Computers to Africa Diary: Day four

(photo credit: Glenn Edwards)

This morning did not start well as my meeting with Microsoft's man in Nairobi to discuss the company's newly launched Digital Pipeline scheme (to lend its "influence" to the task of providing re-furbished PCs from UK companies to developing nations) was cancelled at the last minute.

I had some interesting questions lined up to find out exactly where Microsoft's altruism ends and the promotion of its interests in developing world begins but they will have to wait until I interview the general manager for the East African region next week.

That particular mission aborted, I jumped into a taxi and after a couple of wrong turns managed to make my way to the next meeting of the day with Computers for Schools Kenya. This is an NGO that works to put the computers, that organisations such as Computer Aid in the UK source from business, into the hands of Kenyan students.

After a tour of the CFSK's new facility on the outskirts of Nairobi – including a demonstration of how they take old CRT monitors and make them into cheap TVs useful to the local population – we headed off to see how some schools are making use of this donated technology.

The picture above was taken at the second stop on our tour: Shangilia Mtoto WA Afrika– an amazing community school for the lowest-wrung of Kenya's school-children. Many of the pupils here come from broken or abusive homes and would be on the streets without the centre. They have nothing but the kids here are some of the most energetic and joyful of any I have seen on my visits to schools.

I will be covering this story in more depth but I just wanted to share one of the brilliant images captured by Glenn Edwards – a very experienced photojournalist we are lucky enough to have accompanying us on this trip. If you ever needed evidence of the difference a PC that no longer cuts it in a UK company can make to children in developing countries then this was the place to convince the most cynical mind.