[kictanet] Refurbs Debate

Akich Kwach kwach at archway-productions.com
Wed Sep 2 19:36:46 EAT 2009


Daktari,

It is sad as you say we have to waste foreign exchange for simple technology 
such as set top box. The government spend a lot of funds supporting 
polytechnics and other technical institutions and it is a concern why they 
would not undertake such projects for sustainability.

I am reminded that if it was not of the Amercan industrialist's 
stubbornness, our so called VIPs would not be enjoying a ride in the 
powerful 8V engine block. Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motors kept the 
engineers locked in a workshop for one year until they succeeded in what 
they had ealier believed was impossible to achieve. Therefore if I were in 
your position, I would have picked one technical institution, assign them to 
produce those sets of top boxes and ensure no graduation takes place for 
that relevant department until they succeed. What is the purpose of 
education if it can not address challenges we face? Some might call it 
dictatorship, what is wrong with that if it can make the country move 
forward.

Those are my thoughts,

Akich Kwach


----- Original Message ----- 
From: <bitange at jambo.co.ke>
To: <kwach at archway-productions.com>
Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
Sent: Wednesday, September 02, 2009 2:39 PM
Subject: Re: [kictanet] Refurbs Debate


> Dear Tom,
> Thanks for your candid presentation.  You know my position - developing
> local capacities that would free us from the yoke of dependance.  Indeed
> as we launch the Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) this month, not any local
> entrepreneur or institution that has come up to manufacture the simple set
> top box.  It is so simple that with a manual someone like myself (without
> engineering background) could assemle it.  In fact what we used to call
> Handwork in school could sufice.
>
> This why I always say that it borders criminality when we deny our youth
> employment by handing most of the simpler assemblies to Asia.  We must in
> our discussions develop a graduated method of transitioning from our
> current dependencies, what Steve and Dave in the book, Three Laws of
> Performance, refer to as default future that is laced with our past
> achievements.
>
> Tom you have developed great capacity.  We need to support you to assemble
> PCs, Laptops etc.  This is what development is all about.
>
>
> Regards
>
>
> Ndemo.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>> Dear All,
>>
>>
>>
>> We at Computers for Schools Kenya have been very closely following the
>> debate on "affordable" computers - particularly with reference to 
>> refurbs.
>> Many of the comments are informed and no doubt well intentioned, but many
>> others have left us wringing our hands in despair!
>>
>>
>>
>> CFSK has been working for the last seven years to bring the benefits of
>> ICT to resource-challenged educational & training institutions and
>> community information access & resource centres. At our foundation, based
>> on objective and empirical research, we sought to design an intervention
>> model that would meet the needs of the client group within their resource
>> limitations without unduly compromising quality of access or service.
>> After reviewing several options (details of which I will not go into), we
>> narrowed down quality refurbs from reputable sources as the way to go. 
>> Our
>> decision was informed by the following:
>>
>>
>>
>> Intervention models in other countries. We were particularly impressed by
>> the Computers for Schools Canada Programme and a similar programme in
>> Colombia and Chile - all of which had achieved immense success in taking
>> computers to educational institutions and community information centres
>> such as libraries. Though these three were the biggest such organised
>> interventions virtually all other countries in the West as well as the
>> Asian Tigers had similar programmes but on a smaller scale. ALL were
>> utilising refurbs from the corporate and related sectors that of 
>> necessity
>> have to stay right on the cutting edge of ICT, and therefore have
>> available functional albeit older PCs available from time to time as they
>> upgrade.
>>
>> The needs of the target groups and the use to which they were going to 
>> put
>> the computers ands related accessories they would obtain through us. We
>> established that the refurbs we were able to obtain would meet their
>> requirements: run Windows, run MS Office Suite, run the educational
>> eContent available, and access the Internet where other requisite
>> infrastructure was in place.
>>
>> Functionality of the equipment. CFSK was able to enter into partnerships
>> with reputable organisations overseas that guaranteed that only quality
>> and fully functional refurbs were imported by us. Working with these
>> partners, we have over time revised the minimum specs for such equipment
>> that we will accept - starting off with PIs when we started off in 2002 
>> to
>> our present day minimum of PIVs with at least 256MB of RAM and 20GB HDD.
>> As part of that process, we even anticipate that from the second quarter
>> of next year, we shall only accept TFT and not CRT monitors.
>>
>> Affordability, which we very deliberately put last. All listers will
>> remember that it is only in the last four to five years that the
>> Government has made substantive budgetary allocations for ICTs in the
>> kinds of institutions I am talking about and very wisely too. In 2002 
>> when
>> we started, money for ICTs had to be raised by the institutional 
>> community
>> from their meagre resources or from corporate and other donors. And even
>> the allocations now being made by Government to these institutions,
>> generous as they may be amidst all the other pressing needs, are not
>> enough to saturate them with ICTs at the required level. Refurbs offered
>> and still offer an affordable option that gives good value for money.
>>
>>
>>
>> To allege that refurbs constitute dumping is to be simplistic to a fault.
>> Where the refurbs are not functional, do not meet the needs of the
>> recipients, or are not good value for money, then that would be dumping -
>> and it maybe that a certain amount of this is happening. But to condemn
>> refurbs en masse, is to fail to acknowledge that this country's nascent
>> digital revolution is as a result of these much maligned equipment - not
>> outrageously priced brand new equipment. At CFSK we are for quality, and
>> preferably new, computers. Admittedly, it would be lovely to provide all
>> our institutions with ultra-modern 2.0GHz Duo Core computers with 2GB RAM
>> and 200GB on the HDD, etc. And where they can afford them, especially 
>> with
>> the Government's very welcome intervention in allocating resources for 
>> the
>> purpose, we are glad to help them acquire quality brand new equipment.
>> However, where an institution has limited resources, we must ask the
>> questions: do they NEED the immense capacity that brand new computers at
>> current "standard" specs provide, and should they expend limited 
>> resources
>> on such capacity when they may in fact not need it?
>>
>>
>>
>> Being cognizant of the fact that ALL electronics, new and refurbished,
>> ultimately become eWaste, CFSK working with both local and international
>> partners has established and eWaste Management Centre. This Centre,
>> through innovative disassembly, reuse, recycling and re-export is 
>> managing
>> ICT-related eWaste in a manner that is protective of the environment and
>> mindful of public health. Up-scaling and out-scaling initiatives such as
>> this will ensure we are all protected from the hazards of electronic
>> waste, including that which begun its life as brand new equipment.
>>
>>
>>
>> Eltimately, as one of the listers very wisely suggested, what is required
>> is a level-headed consultation amongst ALL stake holders - civil society,
>> commercial enterprises, a sampling of end users and the regulatory
>> authorities - with a view to defining a rational policy in this area that
>> advances rather than stunts the pivotal sector. We would be ardent
>> participants.
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you,
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Tom Musili
>> Executive Director
>>
>> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>> Computers for Schools Kenya
>> Semco Business Park | Unit 1, Mombasa Road | P.O. Box 48584-00100 |
>> Nairobi , Kenya |
>> Tel:254(0)202060919, Tel/Fax: 254 (0)20 2060920 Mobile
>> (0)722-618788|Email:tom at cfsk.org|Website: www.cfsk.org
>>
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>
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