Can the $100 laptop really reduce the digital divide? IICD spends the day at Afrikadag, Den Haag.

Taking over classrooms, lecture theatres and of course the canteen, the day saw opening speeches from Max van den Berg – Chairperson of organisers, Evert Vermeer Stichting – and the Dutch Minister for International Development, Bert Koenders, as well as an afternoon presentation from the British professor, Paul Collier.

The day is an opportunity for companies, NGOs, charities, artists and well, just about anyone with an interest in Africa, to come together and share their thoughts, feelings and experiences.  Aside from the information fair and music programme, the day also played host to a whopping fifty political and cultural debates and presentations. IICD got involved and contributed to this part of the programme by hosting a debate entitled:

The $100 laptop: how can you make innovative solutions work in developing countries?

Chaired by IICD Board member, Professor Dr. Gerd Junne, the debate invited four professionals with experience in developing products and services for developing communities to discuss their experiences in this area. The panellists, all of whom are based in the Netherlands, included, Prahbu Kandachar from the University of Delft, Ineke Aquarius from ButterflyWorks, Stijn Van der Krogt from IICD and Petra Wentzel from Atos Origin. Under the guiding hand of Professor Junne, the four panellists and audience were all asked to think about their views and experiences in terms of three questions: What are the pre-conditions for introducing the laptop successfully? What problems could arise during implementation? What impact will the laptop have made in 5-7 years?

The discussion initially exposed how polarised an imitative like the $100 laptop project can be; differences of opinion which with an initial hand count seemed wholly irreconcilable. However - and showing that debates like these are never so clearly cut - by the end of the ninety minutes allocated there seemed to be a conclusion which could be argued to resemble a consensus.

Specific issues raised during the discussion included: the importance of needs analysis and ongoing re-evaluation when developing solutions; ensuring local ownership of content creation and development; ensuring fair and unpoliticised distribution; making sure local capacity is available for maintenance and support; and ultimately, what Mr Kandachar described as “the three A’s”: availability, acceptability and accessibility.

For a deeper analysis of the debate, visit the Afrikadag website.