Community Champions: EDS Donates Used Equipment To Help Needy Children In Africa
24 Aug 2007
Underprivileged children in Africa can gain technical skills toward a better future, thanks to EDS and Digital Pipeline, a United Kingdom charity.
Launched as a nonprofit group by Microsoft, Digital Pipeline works with corporations to promote the responsible reuse of discarded personal computers (PCs). The PCs are sent to disadvantaged schools in Africa to educate children so they can someday take part in the information age.
EDS is donating 30,000 PCs to the cause, making it Digital Pipeline's largest single donor to date. The PCs, formerly used on projects in the commercial and public sector, will be refurbished and redeployed to developing African countries. The first shipment is scheduled to arrive this summer.
The effort is a way for EDS to “give something significant back to the wider community,” said Kevin Torgerson, EDS vice president and general manager, Service Delivery Operations, and former account executive for the Department for Work & Pensions account in the UK.
“We can also be confident that Digital Pipeline is providing all of the necessary controls, so that PCs can be disposed of in the most environmentally friendly way – a key consideration for EDS,” said Torgerson, who is also a member of Digital Pipeline's board of trustees.
For each PC that is donated, 25 children are positively affected, according to Digital Pipeline. More than 10,000 students benefit from weekly access to Information Communication Technology (ICT), improving their education and future employment prospects. A single shipment of 400 PCs provides 20 African schools with ICT facilities.
Organizations include Computers for Schools in Kenya, the Ministry of ICT in Madagascar, Schoolnet in Uganda and Vista Ed Tech in Ethiopia.
In addition to EDS, Digital Pipeline participants include Digital Links, Computer Aid International, VISA International and RDC Limited.
Behind the scenes
A lot of behind-the-scenes work goes into making a donation of this scale, said Lee Stevens, EDS business/operational manager of UKIMEA (United Kingdom, Ireland, Middle East and Africa) Asset Management.
“Just because the equipment is going to a good cause doesn't mean we can be any less rigorous in implementing our systems and controls,” Stevens said.
“The knowledge that this donation has the potential to make such a positive difference in Africa really made the long hours and effort worthwhile,” he said. “The support throughout the company for the Digital Pipeline donation has been outstanding with significant contributions from Adrienne Doyle [Contract & Commercial manager], Malcolm George [Government Communications] and Sue Marshall [Microsoft Alliance partner]. I am sure the program helps to reinforce our position as a company that genuinely cares about our responsibilities in society.”
Each year, 31 million used PCs end up in landfill sites around the world, but less than one in 250 go to helping disadvantaged communities. The Digital Pipeline effort includes collection of PCs, secure wiping of data, testing and refurbishment, shipping overseas and installation in schools. The federation also trains teachers and provides technical support.
When a PC reaches the end of second life, the charity collects and recycles 90 percent of its materials, in compliance with the European Commission's Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.
EDS negotiated the title transfer of equipment from clients in order to make its donation, Stevens said. The company also made certain that all data was erased (using the EoL - End of Life - service offering) and that the equipment met charitable specifications.
“This required our technical knowledge and asking the correct technical questions,” Stevens said. “For example, the majority of the equipment does not contain modems and the cost of upgrading it could have limited our ability to help.”
“However, in Africa, most of the PCs will be used as stand alone devices or networked in schools,” he said. “Some devices will be fitted with modems to allow longer distance communication from field hospitals to central locations to aid with diagnosing, where previously it could have taken days to fulfill the same action.”
It took several months to negotiate a contract so that EDS, its clients, Digital Pipeline and the charities were properly represented.
“We stressed the need for environmental compliance and had to receive assurances from the charity that this would be done, providing some guidance on how this could be managed and assuring ourselves that we would not be seen as dumping into the Third World,” Stevens said.
In addition, EDS colleagues in South Africa are developing strong working relationships with the community and businesses. For example, an employee of one EDS client is volunteering as a teacher at a school in Tanzania - using the same PC she once used on the job.
EDS is also helping Digital Pipeline locate the best deals on new keyboards and other equipment, and acts as an intermediary, facilitating smooth operations with PC refurbishing companies.