Local trio to upskill African communities

Three volunteers from the Mullingar area will leave for three countries in east Africa later this year, in a month-long mission to teach information technology to adults and young people in developing communities.Terri Brady and Ian Murphy from Mullingar, and Elaine Leavy from Killucan, will spend the entire month of July 2009 instructing teachers and adults in Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya respectively the ins and outs of computing, on behalf of the Irish charity, Camara."Camara" is a west African word for the phrase 'he (or indeed, she) who teaches with experience'. The Dublin-based registered charity was established by former investment banker Cormac Lynch, and its mission is to educate African communities in IT, and to equip schools in Africa with refurbished computers and educational software.Camara draws support from a host of international volunteers, eighty of whom visit seven African countries - Ethiopia, Lesotho, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Rwanda and Tanzania - every year to carry out IT training.The training is carried out using old computers sourced from owners in Ireland, and other participating countries, and over 10,000 working PCs have been transported to Africa since the charity was founded in 2005.Terri Brady, who lives at Saunderson"s Bridge, Ardmore Road, Mullingar, is making her second trip to Africa as part of the programme.Last year, she was based in Rwanda, where local communities are getting back on their feet after years of war and genocide during the 1990s.Terri was one of nine people from Ireland who joined over 70 others in last year"s mission to Africa, and the nine helped to make 240 teachers computer literate in the space of a month. The charity aims to equip a thousands schools with IT equipment and resources.This year, she is bound for Uganda, and will be based in the town of Port Fortal, visiting nearby communities to train IT.Going to Rwanda in July of this year will be Ian Murphy of Chestnut Grove, Mullingar, who is making his first trip to the continent on behalf of Camara. A student at UCD, Ian is currently sitting his exams.Elaine Leavy from Killucan is also volunteering for the first time, and she will be based in Mombasa, Kenya for the month of July. IT graduate Elaine will hold a fundraiser in aid of her trip at Ennis" Pub, Killucan on Friday next, May 22 at 9pm. All are welcome to take part in the fundraising table quiz, with entry for a table of four costing €20.On the night, tickets will also be sold for a framed Irish rugby shirt, signed by Irish international winger, Tommy Bowe. The winner of the shirt will be drawn on Friday, June 5 at Ennis" Pub, and will be contacted by phone.Your support would be appreciated, and to donate to Elaine"s campaign, log on to www.mycharity.ie/event/elaine_africa09/; alternatively, to contact Elaine, drop her a line at elaineleavy@gmail.comThe three Westmeath participants met at Camara"s Digital Hub office on Dublin"s Thomas Street recently, and they are looking for your support before heading for east Africa in July.They are also appealing for more Westmeath volunteers to sign up for project, and have asked local householders with unwanted but workable computers to contribute them towards the campaign.'The computers are refurbished, cleared of all data and shipped out to Africa, and the more technology we have out there, the closer we come to creating IT hubs and workshops in all of the countries involved,' Terri Brady told the Westmeath Examiner. 'We hope to make as many communities as possible self-sufficient in IT.'Terri added that the computers are loaded with information about HIV and AIDS, raising awareness about the diseases, and also with offline copies of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia website.Computer owners in Mullingar and beyond who wish to contribute an old machine to the charity needn"t worry about relinquishing sensitive and personal data. Ensure that your computer is clear of all information which you wish to keep, and submit it to Camara.It costs the charity just €50 to refurbish and ship each computer, and as part of this computer disposal solution, all secure data is destroyed and wiped off your hard disk before being shipped. The machines are rebooted with the open source operating system Linux, and a wealth of educational and training software.'While this computer disposal solution is good for the environment and the education of African children, it is also a commercially attractive solution for businesses,' said Camara CEO, Cormac Lynch. 'Furthermore, these computers will transform the lives of African children, and the knowledge will provide the stimulus for new African indigenous enterprises and success stories.'Camara accepts computers of all brands with the following minimum specification: Pentium III+ processor, 256MB RAM, 8GB hard disk space, 15'-17' monitors, and equipped with power leads, keyboards and mice. The charity also accepts educational and functional software which is in good working condition.Anyone who would like to contribute their machine to the charity should phone 01-6522673, or e-mail Mark Fox at mark@camara.ie.Camara business clients include Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, AIB, and the Departments of Education and Finance, and they have encouraged public and private sector entities in Westmeath and further afield to donate their unused computers to the cause.Meanwhile, prospective volunteers can log on to www.camara.ie/volunteer for more information, or to www.camara.ie/edonations to make a financial contribution.