The i-Connect Project

Bridging the digital divide

The “i-Connect Project” is an initiative that aims to bridge the digital and knowledge divide through the development of an innovative mobile ICT centre that will provide universal access to a range of computer-based resources.

In 2012 this Project was the winner of the Etisalat Award for innovation and then 2013 the AR-CSR Sustainable Solution Showcase Award.

This project proposes to supply mobile internet/computer vehicles to schools in various locations. These vehicles (buses or trucks and renovated containers) will move from one school to another on a daily basis and be scheduled into the school timetable. This will enable the sharing of computer facilities amongst many schools thus reaching a wider population, compared to individual school suites or ICT centres.

Additional Uses

To further support sustainability and the surrounding community outside school hours and during the holidays the Mobile ICT Units can be used for various other services, such as

  • Training Centre: Teacher training,  computer skills training, health/disease awareness,  National Youth Service
  • Public data collection: Registration (e.g. SIM, Enrolment, Censors, Elections)
  • Voting: Organisational, local and national elections
  • Large scale computerisation / digitization services: Transforming manual data and files to computerised systems.
  • Business Centre: Public internet and computer services
  • Testing Centre: From online testing to recruitment or computerised driving tests.

We believe that these facilities will be instrumental in providing an avenue for education, general knowledge acquisition and raising IT awareness across the country, which is crucial in today’s information driven society.