Over the past four years the Government of Saint Lucia has made a concerted effort to enable universal access to computers. By establishing the ‘One Laptop Per Child Programme’, the Government of Saint Lucia has, in effect, facilitated easy access to information through the use of modern technology. According to a press release from the prime minister’s office, PM Kenny D. Anthony is pleased to announce that exactly 3,840 laptops, 550 desktops and 125 projectors arrived safely to Port Castries from the Republic of China (Taiwan) on Monday, February 15, 2016.
The ‘One Laptop Per Child Programme’ was, in 2016, funded by the Government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to the tune of EC$3.75 million. The Taiwanese also funded the Government-initiated ‘Teacher Training Programme’, an islandwide initiative to equip educators with the skills and resources to effectively integrate the use of Information and Communication Technology in the classroom. “The generous contribution to the development of the education sector will ensure every single child in Form Three receives a notebook PC operating on Windows 10, supplied by Taiwanese manufacturing company, Asus,” the release says.
The Government of Saint Lucia will, in due course, announce a special handing over ceremony of equipment and devices for the Laptop Programme. The Laptop Programme was supported by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago in its inaugural year, 2014, and in the second year by the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
