Project Description
Year: 2022
Amount: € 3.000,-
Place: Jayapura district and surrounding areas
From companies to government institutions: everywhere in Papua old-fashioned writing is being replaced by fast and efficient computer programs. This digital revolution needs people who can handle it. There are way more employment opportunities for people with digital skills than for those without. Also, communities, churches, organizations and associations benefit when they can make a budget overview or presentation themselves.
Benkel Kerja Papua (BKP), a team of technically trained volunteers from Jayapura, train Papuans in remote areas in the use of computers and digital media four times a year. From Excel to PowerPoint and Word, everything is covered. The team spends 10 days in these kampongs or neighborhoods and gives free lessons to anyone who is interested. The villagers provide the volunteers with shelter and food.
The enthusiasm for the computer courses is enormous. “Learning computer skills is a luxury for most Papuans,” BKP writes in their first evaluation report. Sometimes they come in hundreds at once, like in the village of Taronta in the Sarmi district. So far, more than 3,800 people (aged 5 to 70 years!) in Papua have followed this computer course.
BKP does not have enough laptops and other training materials to help all these participants. It is the rule rather than the exception that at least four people practice simultaneously on one laptop. Hapin is impressed by the years of dedication and commitment of the volunteers and decided to help. The computer course offers new opportunities and possibilities for many Papuans, especially for young people in the more remote areas. With Hapin’s financial contribution, BKP was able to purchase, among other things, an LCD projector, a printer and multiple laptops.
