WCE eCorps team to visit Kaduna, Nigeria
World Computer Exchange is sending 10 eCorps tech volunteers to Kaduna, Nigeria for two weeks this August . The team will help with community orientation and computer and network installation. Our team has been invited by the Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna that is importing 800 computers from WCE Chicago and WCE Vermont to help them connect 20 of their schools to the Internet. These 800 computers are partially sponsored by The Strategic Group in Gainesville, Florida. They learned of WCE in the December issue of GLAMOUR magazine.
All costs for the team while they are in Nigeria will be covered and our volunteers have been invited to stay in local homes and learn about the history and culture of Nigeria. WCE does not currently have funds to cover the $1,000 -$2,000 cost of each flight for this team - but it is tax deductible. We are approaching KLM, British Air, and Lufthansa and donors to see if we can reduce the flight cost for the team.
The 4 tasks for the volunteer eCorps team will be: (1) general community and school orientation about using computers and the Internet, (2) installation of local software and the installation of the computers and connection to the Internet where possible, (3) configure servers for local area networks, and (4) we hope someone on the team will know Linux LTSP configuration of servers for thin client labs using Pentium 4s as servers and Pentium 1s as dumb terminals.
Each volunteer will need to pay for their flight, get an international insurance rider on their medical insurance, and sign a liability waiver for World Computer Exchange.
It looks like we have eight volunteers interested in going so far. Please let me know if you or someone you know might be interested in going to help.
All ten will fly on the same flight to Abuja together. Fr. Kukah has arranged for all members of the team to be picked-up from the airport and driven the two hours north to Kaduna and the homes that have volunteered to house the team.
The 800 computers that are now enroute will connect 25 schools in 7 Dioceses across the states in the Northern part of Nigeria. Over 10,000 students will benefit from these computers in Catholic schools which have a diverse student population drawn from different communities in the country. These computers will change the lives of many of the young people, increase and sustain student intake in schools and enhance their competitiveness.
WCE’s Nigerian Partner is the Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna in Nigeria. Our contact is Monsignor Matthew Hassan Kukah, the Vicar General of the Archdiocese. Msgr. Kukah was Secretary General of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference. He is currently working in a Parish with a population of over 6,000 parishioners in the city of Kaduna. He has been actively involved in human rights work in Nigeria for nearly 20 years. In recognition of his contributions, he was appointed by the President to serve as a member of the Truth Commission in Nigeria and is currently working to end the conflict between Shell and the people of Ogoni in the Niger-Delta while also serving currently as a Member of the Electoral Reform Committee.
WCE is planning similar future eCorps trips in the next few months to Bolivia and Tanzania in the next few months.
