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| Forest Whitaker |
Swedish IT
firm Ericsson has partnered with renowned American actor Forest Whitaker in a
new foundation with the mission to promote peace among troubled urban
neighbourhoods in South Sudan, Uganda and everywhere in the world. Whitaker is
an Oscar-winning actor, humanist and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. In a press
statement from the Ericsson's Nairobi office, the IT firm said its engagement would
begin by providing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) solutions to
schools in two locations, South Sudan and Uganda, in conjunction with the
global education initiative Connect To Learn.
This will enable the PeaceEarth Foundation to establish access to the internet and create a collaborative environment among the participating youth and further develop the education initiatives.
The project will be part of the firm's contribution to the Social Good Summit held in New York, with parallel sessions in Nairobi and Beijing earlier in the week.
Also through Connect to Learn, Ericsson will provide on-site project management resources, Wi-Fi coverage, and basic ICT training for teachers and students on the use of the Ericsson cloud computing solution.
Ericsson President and CEO Hans Vestberg said the company’s work with PeaceEarth Foundation is a natural extension of how to bring its competence to advocate for Technology for Good around the world.
'We know that our technology has a positive link to development, where 10 percent of increased broadband penetration leads to more than 1 percent sustainable growth in GDP. You can't have positive social and economic development where people are suffering from conflicts or natural disasters. I hope that extending access to education will help enable the PeaceEarth Foundation further its goals,' said Vestberg.
The PeaceEarth Foundation brings together public and private entities and aims to serve as a vehicle for an array of programmes, initiatives and campaigns in the U.S. and around the world.
'Ericsson's support to PeaceEarth will establish a truly connected programme in South Sudan and Uganda. The commitment will allow us to advance our shared goal to collectively move our world towards peace, one day at a time,' said Whitaker.
This will enable the PeaceEarth Foundation to establish access to the internet and create a collaborative environment among the participating youth and further develop the education initiatives.
The project will be part of the firm's contribution to the Social Good Summit held in New York, with parallel sessions in Nairobi and Beijing earlier in the week.
Also through Connect to Learn, Ericsson will provide on-site project management resources, Wi-Fi coverage, and basic ICT training for teachers and students on the use of the Ericsson cloud computing solution.
Ericsson President and CEO Hans Vestberg said the company’s work with PeaceEarth Foundation is a natural extension of how to bring its competence to advocate for Technology for Good around the world.
'We know that our technology has a positive link to development, where 10 percent of increased broadband penetration leads to more than 1 percent sustainable growth in GDP. You can't have positive social and economic development where people are suffering from conflicts or natural disasters. I hope that extending access to education will help enable the PeaceEarth Foundation further its goals,' said Vestberg.
The PeaceEarth Foundation brings together public and private entities and aims to serve as a vehicle for an array of programmes, initiatives and campaigns in the U.S. and around the world.
'Ericsson's support to PeaceEarth will establish a truly connected programme in South Sudan and Uganda. The commitment will allow us to advance our shared goal to collectively move our world towards peace, one day at a time,' said Whitaker.
Currently,
1.5 billion people live in countries affected by violent conflict, and more
than 8 million children have been killed or disabled through violent conflict.
Working in partnership with local and regional experts, civil society and multilateral organisations, governments and businesses, PeaceEarth will work to promote peaceful conflict resolution through youth empowerment, access to knowledge, capacity-building and cultural diversity.
Working in partnership with local and regional experts, civil society and multilateral organisations, governments and businesses, PeaceEarth will work to promote peaceful conflict resolution through youth empowerment, access to knowledge, capacity-building and cultural diversity.
Afriquejet.com