Orange Sierra Leone Foundation on Monday 23rd May, 2022 launched Digital School Kits 2022 Project at Orange Headquarters Terrace on Hill Station in Freetown to mark the beginning of an epoch in the history of Sierra Leone.

The project was designed for under-privileged primary school pupils approved by Government to have basic digital learning in the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). Ten primary schools benefited from the pilot phase of the project, which are St. Edwards Primary, Fourah Bay College (FBC), Marathana, Wilberforce, Church of Christ, Ilmo Zikre Islamic and four others respectively. Teachers of the beneficiary schools have been trained on digital school kits training of trainers’ course by Orange SL implementing partners of the project, BIAZO SL Limited to train the school pupils.

Digital School Kits Project will be deployed and installed in each of the primary schools for training of pupils, including 23 tablets, Bluetooth speakers, projectors and screens, 10 headphones, laptops, SD Card (256GB) and other digital kits.

Speaking at the press launch, Director of Orange Sierra Leone Foundation, Jestina Betts, underscored the importance of digital learning saying the Foundation is here to make social change in the lives of the people and the country.

Director Jestina Betts said the launch of the exciting Digital School Kits Project in the country was unprecedented as the digital training is on the move to change the lives of people.

Orange B2B Director, Edward Sesay, said the launch of the pilot phase of the Digital School Kits Project marked the beginning of a new chapter in primary education in Sierra Leone.

According to him, he was moved by the initiative of the Foundation to impact digital learning in under-privileged primary schools.
According to Edward Sesay, “In Africa and Middle East, many children have no access to books or internet facilities. Digital schools are electronic library providing educational contents to under-resource schools. Our aim is to offer children access to education using learning techniques thereby closing the gap. The first Digital School Kits were introduced in June 2016 by Orange Group in Madagascar and twelve (12) other countries are now part of the Digital School Kits Project.”He said Sierra Leone has joined the Digital School Project with Orange Sierra Leone Foundation launching the project to provide underprivileged schools with teaching and learning materials not normally available to pupils.

Director Sesay said the aim was to equip twenty (20) primary schools in the pilot phase with digital learning products designed for pupils to familiarize with digital learning.

He said Orange Group’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) focused on digital inclusion and equality regardless of background whereby children access educational contents while using digital learning.

Director Sesay disclosed that the pilot phase project would impact digital learning to about two thousand (2000) pupils in twenty (20) schools this school year.
One of teachers of the beneficiary schools, Abraham BS Kamara, expressed gratitude to Orange Sierra Leone Foundation for the digital project.He further registered the commitment of the pupils to work and acquire digital learning in a bid to access educational contents.

Distribution of certificates of the Digital School Kits training of trainers course which teachers participated in climaxed the launch of the project.