Program to bridge IT gap wins grant<\/p>\n
Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Bandung-based LPM Indonesia (Sutera Foundation), has recently
\nbeen named one of 15 winners of this year's Samsung DigitAll Hope
\nawards, and has be awarded a grant of about US$57,000.<\/p>\n
The awards, which offer a total of $600,000 in grants, is
\nSamsung Electronics' single largest social program outside of
\nKorea, and is targeted at young people in Samsung's eight Asia-
\nPacific markets -- Australia, India, Thailand, Vietnam,
\nIndonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore.<\/p>\n
The Sutera Foundation's proposal for a Community Information
\nTechnology Center for Youth (CommIT for Youth) was chosen based
\non its relevance to social and technological issues currently
\nprevalent in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"The program is not only efficient and educational, but also
\ninvolves a substantial number of young people,\" the Indonesian
\njudge on the awards committee, House of Representatives' member
\nMarwah Daud, said in a press conference last Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The program involves building Community Information Technology
\nCenters for Youth (CITCY) in Bandung, Yogyakarta and Surabaya to
\nprovide IT awareness training and allow low-cost or free access
\nto a wide variety of computer technologies.<\/p>\n
\"Hopefully, this will create a society that is aware of
\ninformation technology and its uses,\" LPM Indonesia's executive
\ndirector I. Teja Harjaya said, explaining that the organization
\nwill work together with other human development organizations as
\nwell as schools.<\/p>\n
Creating an awareness of IT was just one part of CommIT for
\nYouth's three goals in bridging the IT gap, Teja said, adding
\nthat the questions of knowledge and content also played a part.<\/p>\n
To address the question of knowledge, the organization
\nrecognized the individual's need for adequate training so as to
\nattain the relevant skills to operate in the information society.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, content would be addressed by creating a youth
\nportal to accommodate the aspirations of young people, allow them
\nto express themselves and promote youth creativity, Teja said.<\/p>\n
\"In order to enhance the information technology experience,
\nindividuals must first be interested in what they are doing -
\nwhat they can find on the Internet and in the computer programs
\nthus play an important part in engaging their interest,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Other winners of Samsung DigitAll Hope awards are the Fitzroy
\nLearning Network and The Smith Family from Australia, Development
\nAlternatives and National Centre for Promotion of Employment for
\nDisabled People from India, and the Farmers' Organization Area C-
\n2 Kerpan and Federation of Family Planning Associations from
\nMalaysia.<\/p>\n
Also winning this year's awards are the Salesians of St John
\nBosco from the Philippines, Ngee Ann Polytechnic and YMCA from
\nSingapore, Bangkok College of Nursing, Children's News Agency,
\nand Internet for School & Community Foundation Organizations from
\nThailand, and Health for Women and Children and the Sao Mai
\nComputer Centre for the Blind from Vietnam.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/program-to-bridge-it-gap-wins-grant-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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