What began as a small request for two laptops so a remote school could access learning resources turned into a hugely rewarding project
Until recently, school aged children in Pavaere, a remote village in the independent region of Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, needed to walk several kilometres of rocky, hilly terrain to access a school with the resources they needed to learn. Without electricity, there was no way for the local primary school to access up to date information and learning tools.
In 2019, we were contacted by a Pavaere village representative with a request for two laptops for the school. But after hearing their story, we knew we wanted to do more! Working in collaboration with a fantastic local project coordinator on the ground, we sourced and facilitated the delivery of two pallets of educational resources, 10 laptops, and a large amount of solar inverters to create an educational hub.
Now, in a village that has no electricity, one solitary room full of laptops hums 24 hours a day. Entirely solar powered, it utilises an offline e-learning system known as ‘Rachael’ that allows students to access up to date information and resources to vastly improve their education.
Children in the village can now attend school in their own backyard, and we were thrilled to hear that enrollments have increased significantly, with many town children now wanting to make the journey to learn in the IT hub.
Check out this video to hear how this project has changed the lives of children at Pavaere SDA Primary School.
