Thailand Plans 1 Free Laptop Per Child
- From: "Chim" <ChimS1@xxxxxxx>
- Date: 13 Aug 2006 11:42:15 -0700
Thailand Plans 1 Free Laptop Per Child
One Laptop per Child
Aug 13, 2006 : 8:37 am ET
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has announced
that an ambitious project to provide low-cost laptop computers to all
of Thailand's millions of elementary school students will begin in
October.
The U.S.-based "One Laptop per Child" project aims to deliver up to 30
computers to Thailand in October and 500 more in November, Thaksin said
in a nationwide radio broadcast on Saturday.
"If this project is completed, each elementary school child will
receive a computer to learn on at school," Thaksin said.
"Each elementary school child will receive a computer that the
government will buy for them, free of charge, instead of books, because
books will be found and can be read on computers," he said.
He said the first batch of laptops -- costing around US$100 (euro79)
each -- will be distributed to children in rural areas where access to
technology is limited. Those children will test the computers before
the government proceeds with the project nationwide. The laptops are
not yet in production.
The Thai government adopted the project a year ago after Thaksin met
the "One Laptop Per Child" project's founder, Nicholas Negroponte, the
state Thai News Agency reported Sunday.
Some critics say the project misallocates resources and that
governments in developing countries would do better to invest in
providing for more basic needs. Other countries that have shown
interest in the project -- which has been endorsed by the United
Nations -- include China and Brazil, Thaksin said.
The machines are being designed to be cheap and sturdy, and have
minimum running costs. They will use the free Linux operating system,
flash memory instead of a hard drive, and according to Thaksin will be
able to run on an outboard electricity generator that is pumped by
hand.
Thaksin entered business as an agent for IBM computer systems, and
later built a telecommunications empire that made him one of Thailand's
richest men.
The prime minister last week launched his campaign for re-election at
polls scheduled for Oct. 15.
.
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