Think To DO Institute, Digicel and Foundation Institute Splikami launch digital citizen research project

WILLEMSTAD - Closing the digital divide is one of the equalizing strategies that will lead to the creation of resilient people, resilient knowledge, resilient leadership and, best of all, a resilient society.

Using best practice research and designed collaboratively, the Think To DO Institute, Digicel and Foundation Institute Splikami have designed a large-scale research project that will follow a group of households in several neighborhoods that have not had the necessary tools to have access to the internet.   This research is designed to support the UNESCO 2030 goal to provide access to technology to every citizen of Curacao as a BASIC HUMAN RIGHT. The collaboration will also monitor the reduction of inequalities in access to education, to employment, to finance management, to health care amongst others as the result of access to technology and to life-long learning skills.

The first stages of the project were launched this week with the operation of the Life-Long Learning Center-Marchena.  The pilot project connects 21 households and 89 persons at no cost.  The households receive the necessary hardware to make it possible for their household to be connected. The household also receives a computer and support tools to study for school, to study for employment and to learn to use digital tools necessary in society.  The individuals have an individualized learning plan and will attend trainings at the Splikami Life-Long Learning Center in the areas that they have set as goals.  In addition, the adults and children will receive ICT courses, mindset training and financial literacy training.

The project will be expanded in this neighborhood and in two other neighborhoods this year and expanded to include 2779 households in the span of the research period.

Beginning with the end in mind, and with the belief that the return on such an investment will be substantial, it is the goal to demonstrate the positive effects on creating social cohesion, and on creating resilience. The findings of this bold proposition demonstrate the importance of large-scale, systemic reform initiative focused on creating a globally competitive, digitally literate population. It offers a data-driven process to support the UNESCO 2030 goal to provide access to technology to every citizen as a BASIC HUMAN RIGHT. 




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