Tech in African schools
Unfortunately for many African children, the reality of a classroom remains a dream. It is estimated that one-third of people over the age of 15 living in sub-Saharan Africa cannot read and write. While there are a lot of global efforts and political initiatives to get kids into school across Africa, the lives of the ones already in school are not particularly glamorous either; Lack of proper infrastructure and classroom resources is the norm. In the capital city of Kenya, Nairobi, there is a team of engineers and technologists vowing to digitize classrooms for better learning.
The Kio Kit is an integrated solution consisting of 40 computer tablets in a rugged liked suitcase. It is developed by a company called BRCK in Nairobi to bring affordable computers to schools in Kenya. The tablets are specially designed to survive in the harsh conditions of Africa and the hands of school pupils. The tablets have textbooks, multimedia contents, and other educational resources. What makes Kio Kit different special is that it is built with the shortcomings of Africa in mind. The tablets have great battery performers, the kit comes with a WIFI hub for easy connectivity and a server to store static contents for regions without internet. BRCK’s innovation is proving to be successful as there are current initiatives to expand it across not just Kenya but all of Africa.
