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RUDESAT International goes rural

RUDESAT International opened its first rural centre on 2 February 2009, in Kenya’s Western Province. The centre, which is the divisional coordinating office for Butula sub-district (division), is located next to and in the same compound with the Butula post office. We are actually in the former Butula Constituency office.

The centre will serve as a digital village and assist villagers in the area to access technologies and improve their rural enterprises.

Services offered at the centre
To the extent that the centre is supposed to be self-sustaining – at least in terms of paying staff salaries and maintaining the facility, we found it necessary to start by offering basic services that generate funds (click to visit). Thus, on 2 February 2009, the centre started offering the following services

• Typing/typesetting
• Spiral binding
• Photocopying
• Scanning
• Computer software and hardware maintenance (we have competent expertise in troubleshooting and repair of computers. Clients may bring their computers or ask us to visit them at their sites. Of course the visit will cost the client a small fee)

A key asset of the centre is the near-constant availability of power, in a place where power supply from the main electricity line comes in fits and starts. RUDESAT International’s Butula centre has galvanised itself against this epileptic power supply by acquiring an inverter and four batteries. This combination enables storage of enough charge to supply the centre with power continuously for up to 8 hours. As a result, most of the time we have power when there is no power !

Internet access
Finding a suitable service provider for Internet access has been a conundrum of sorts. However, we are looking into possibilities of using Telkom, Safaricom or Zain. We expect this service to be available at the centre by early March.

Current staff capacity at the centre
Currently, the centre is managed directly by RUDESAT International’s Kenya Country co-Director for Western Province, Dr. Sebastian Okelo, and an IT Manager, Maurice Odhiambo. Both are very highly qualified in their respective fields. Dr. Okelo’s direct involvement in activities of the centre will of course diminish as new staff there become familiar with the day-in-day-out operations of the centre, and especially after we recruit a centre manager.

Other staff

We advertised positions for technical and support staff positions on 26 January 2009 (click to visit) and conducted interviews on 31 January 2009. The interviews were transparent and resulted in recruitment of only the best candidates. The staff started working on 2 February 2009. Thus they had a week to organise their teaching materials, admit trainees and generally prepare themselves for the opening on 9 February.

Capacity-building component

In line with the Kenya Digital Village Network initiative, the Butula Centre has space for conducting IT courses.  Bearing in mind the large numbers of rural folks, particularly the youth, who could benefit from such courses, we are admitting anyone who is willing and able to learn IT.

In this connection, it is noteworthy that even primary school pupils have started enrolling for our courses. They will be coming on weekends and during the holidays. Because some of our staff have experience in handling IT courses in primary schools, we are in a position to develop curricula to suit this clientele. And what an opportunity ! The villagers over there can now start equipping  their kids with IT skills from as early as when they join standard one or even earlier, a hitherto uncommon occurrence in that part of the country.

The role of village representatives in promoting enrolment

To the extent that village representatives (click to visit) are in close contact with colleagues at village level who would benefit from these courses, their services have been enlisted in identifying such potential trainees and sensitizing them on the courses. Already significant numbers of trainees have been introduced to the centre through the representatives, and the figures are bound to rise with time as knock-on effects through the trainees take effect.

Our mobile IT courses

From the Butula focal point, RUDESAT International will be offering mobile IT courses to various schools in the environs. As most of the schools in Butula still do not have power from the main supply, we will run many of the courses by using power point presentations with equipment powered from batteries. However, some schools have generators yet others have solar power, and that will help immensely. Our efforts will be assisted as more schools benefit from the on-going electrification programme in the area.

The mobile courses will be offered during the holidays and on weekends, to minimise disruption of the main school programme. Already arrangements have been finalized with Buhuyi Secondary School, about 6 kilometres from Butula on the Bumala-Bungoma road, to offer courses to teachers and interested students at the school as well as those in nearby primary and secondary schools. The first set of courses will be conducted in April this year. This arrangement will fast-track learning, as courses will be running for up to 8 hours daily instead of only 2, as is the case at the Butula centre.

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