Botswana

University Volunteers Promote Sustainable Development
International UN Volunteers (IUNVs) from George Mason University, placed under a special agreement under UNITeS, supported the national Botswana WorLD programme. The World Links for Development Program (WorLD) Programme, managed by the World Bank, helps countries develop sustainable solutions for mobilizing the equipment, training, educational resources and school-to-school partnerships required to bring students in developing countries online and into the global community. Through ICT, it links students and teachers in secondary schools in developing countries with counterparts in industrialized countries and elsewhere for collaborative research, teaching and learning projects. In Botswana, UNITeS supported the national WorLD programme in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education.

These IUNVs from George Mason University assisted in the training and development of representatives from UNITeS/ WorLD-assisted schools in all technical aspects of the programme. These included establishing communication links between schools, designing school websites, identifying various Internet connectivity options and recommending appropriate ICT equipment for the schools.

From February to March 2002, one University Volunteer, serving as ICT Technical Specialist, assisted in the technical coordination strategy for all the WorLD schools in the country, establishing a timeline for operations and setting up communication links between regions, while another served as the ICT Intern for the Ministry of Education.

Two other IUNVs trained the staff of the Botswana Girl Guides Association and its affiliates, as well as the staff, leaders and members of the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA), on basic communication and computer skills. From June to August 2002, the two Volunteers offered support to the organizations through developing the websites, identifying appropriate ICT facilities to improve systems of communication, and preparing promotional materials for resource mobilization efforts.

From February to May 2002, a further University Volunteer assisted in managing the creation of Enterprise Botswana’s web presence through gathering content for the site and creating documents and graphics. Enterprise Botswana provides technology resources to allow clients to access and utilize information in pursuit of learning about entrepreneurship development. The Volunteer managed the web server's storage of files and directory structure and provided training on these.

 

ICT for HIV/AIDS Prevention
Another International UN Volunteer from Afghanistan was responsible for training trainers on the use of ICT programmes for the Ministry of Health on Arv programme. The IUNV, who was funded by the Japanese Trust Fund, developed ICT training programs for health workers and assisted UNDP in supporting an initiative to train and network teachers on HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment through the application of ICTs.