The government of Rwanda has resumed its project to give laptop loans to students after shelving it for a while due to multiple comments that had painted a negative impression on the initiative.
The project which is being implemented by the government alongside other companies, including Intel, Africa Smart Investments distribution (ASI-D), Positivo BGH, MTN, Microsoft and Bank of Kigali — was launched in 2016 but it was put to a halt after the recipients of laptops started complaining about the quality of laptops.
Now, the project has been restarted and the Rwandan Minister of ICT and Innovation Paula Ingabire has said that they’ll distribute over 14000 laptops on loans in the first phase.
The laptop loans are given to students on the government sponsorship scheme and the payments are handled after a student has completed studies.
Ingabire, who officiated the first handover of the laptops at the University of Rwanda — said the government will help students repair the laptops in case of any problem.
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She also stressed that the government is investing in the project as part of the drive to digitize the education system in Rwanda.
“The effort of resuming this exercise of distributing laptops is in line with the Government’s objective to shift from the teacher-centered methodology of learning to a more active student-centered learning experience,” she said, according to The NewTimes.
This programme is part of “Viziyo”, an initiative rolled out to accelerate penetration of smart devices in Rwanda and increase countrywide broadband penetration.
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