SEHITHWA – Residents of Sehithwa village are proud beneficiaries of a high-tech digital village donated to them by Samsung Electronics in collaboration with the Korean Embassy and the Ministry of Transport and communication. Sehithwa is a village in Ngamiland District located 100 Kilometers south of Maun.
The Samsung donation comprises of a solar powered health centre which also houses a telemedical centre at the village clinic and is expected to serve communities in the nearby villages of Bodibeng, Bothatogo and Toteng as well, most of who have in the past been accessing services in Maun. It is at the health centre where services such the screening of eye, ear, blood, dental screening, to mention but a few will be conducted and is expected to better the everyday lives of people at hard to reach areas. Another donation was that of a solar powered internet laboratory at the local school, as well as a solar powered generator.
Guest speaker and area Member of Parliament Thato Kwerepe said at the event that he was more than anything delighted that the health centre has a tele-medicine facility which will help address the shortage of specialized doctors in the district. “People from rural areas have had it hard in the past as they had to travel long distances to seek medical assistance. But we are here today to witness the handing over of this facility, which we receive with both hands. The donation is a good gesture and given to us today by generous people, and so we can only wish them well so that they may continue with their kindness”, he said. He applauded the private sector for their willingliness to assist government in bringing ICT closer to people, adding that internet connectivity has also improved the livelihoods of people in rural communities more especially, even though it is not all of them who are computer literate. As for the solar powered internet school, he said its existence at Sehithwa primary school will help pupils excel even more as the school is already ranked amongst the country’s top achieving schools. “It is a known fact that most of our schools have not been perfoming well for a long time now. But now because you have a well equipped laboratory, I can confidently say our pupils will excel even more. Their teachers will on the other hand also benefit as they will practice and share knowledge on e-learning, ICT skills as well as research”, said Kwerepe.
Also speaking at the launch, Samsung Electronics Southern Africa Managing Director Sung Woo Han said it has always been their everyday wish to expose as many learners as possible to technology in the classroom form an early age as a way of grooming them to become gladly competitive graduates as they grow into adult life. He pointed out also that they have taken upon themselves to not only share their skills and resources but also the best innovation as they believe success cannot only be measured by achievements made in businesses, but can also be assessed by how well a business serves its people and how deeply the people’s lives are impacted. “I must hasten to say we are happy to have started this with you. This donation might look small, but its rewards will be of great benefit. We believe children in this area will to a great extent benefit as their learning environment now has a major turnaround. It is just up to them now to make hay while the sun shines”.
