Residents of Alexandra township yesterday became the latest beneficiaries of an ongoing programme of technology donation by Microsoft SA and HP with the opening of the latest Digital Village.
The Digital Village concept, which began with the opening of a community computer centre in Soweto in 1997, now includes 28 centres throughout the country with another 30 promised by Microsoft over the next six months.
The latest Digital Village, located at the Alexandra Community Library, is part of the Alexandra Renewal Programme announced in February. The centre consists of 20 computers, two printers and two NetServers donated by HP South Africa, and operating system and Office software contributed by Microsoft.
Although Internet access was not initially included in the donation, Garry Hodgson, business solutions manager at Microsoft, committed the company to providing Internet access for "at least the first year".
Opening the centre, Johannesburg executive mayor Amos Masondo said government does not have adequate resources to bridge the digital divide on its own and he hoped the partnership with business would "grow from strength to strength". Masondo added that Alexandra residents should take "advantage of this opportunity to reap the benefits of online access. We are moving closer to our dream of becoming a world-class African city."
The centre is to be managed by a committee drawn from the Alexandra community. Although start-up and maintenance costs are initially covered by the donating companies, the centre is expected to develop a sustainable business plan within a year. Members of the management team are given basic training in management and IT before being appointed to the committee which is headed up by a full-time paid co-ordinator.
Hodgson said the Digital Village would provide small business owners and entrepreneurs with access to technology and business services such as e-mail and printing. He noted that the Digital Village in Soweto had increased in size from 20 computers in 1997 to 40 this year. Hodgson added that the centre generated revenue from offering these essential business services to paying customers.
Jos Nickmans, MD of HP South Africa, said: "Accessibility of technology and skills transfer will empower the people to determine and shape their future."
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