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Press Release
U.S. Nonprofit Top & MCPS Donates 1,000 Refurbished Computers to Cameroon
Yaounde, December 28, 2007
Five hundred of one thousand computers, donated by the U.S.-based nonprofit Technology Outreach Projects (TOP) and Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), will begin their official in-country voyage from the United States to beneficiaries in Cameroon in a ceremony hosted by U.S. Ambassador Janet E. Garvey, with the participation of TOP Executive Director Yakoubou Ousmanou and Confederation of African Football President Issa Hayatou. Minister of Basic Education Haman Adama will be the special guest of honor. The Ministry of Secondary Education will be represented by Secretary of State at the Ministry Catherine Abena. Peace Corps Country Director James T. Ham as well as other Cameroonian officials, students, parents and educators will also take part in the ceremony, to be held Friday January 4, 2008, from 16:00 to 17:00 at the Residence of the U.S. Ambassador. In addition to the 500 computers to be donated during this ceremony in Yaounde, another 500 computers will be donated during a separate ceremony to be held later on in the year in Douala.
As a result of this Technology Outreach Projects initiative, started by TOP Executive Director Yakoubou Ousmanou, children in Africa and nonprofit organizations who have never before seen or used computers will soon benefit from having them in their classrooms or offices. TOP has planned a follow-up phase to train teachers and users to utilize and maintain the equipment. The TOP-donated computers will serve African students/nonprofit organizations with no previous access to instructional resources on the Internet. Since its founding in 2005, TOP has sent 1,500 computers to Africa. Of these, 300 computers were received in Douala, in December 2006, for 35 schools of the Douala III Urban Council of Cameroon and for the establishment of a new multimedia center. Two hundred computers were sent to the Ivory Coast, in 2007.
TOP receives computers from various sources in the United States, including surplus used computers and peripherals, due to a MCPS technology modernization program, in Maryland, United States. Mr. Ousmanou coordinates donation processing along with the drive for funding to support transportation costs, maintenance repair and other tasks related to delivering the computers to Africa. As a parallel goal, the TOP Executive Director is set on getting Cameroon officials to remove high customs fees and duties on computers intended for school children and nonprofit organizations.
For further information, please contact the Information Section of the U.S. Embassy, Yaounde, Tel 2220-1500, x4162 or x4273. Mr. Ousmanou of Technology Outreach Projects may be contacted following the ceremony and/or via email at Yakoubou_ousmanou@mcpsmd.org
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