Local laptop assembly to help cut costs, says Henry Rotich

President Uhuru Kenyatta at a stand during the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology's anniversary celebrations.

What you need to know:

  • Treasury CS says part of the plan is to assemble laptops locally to meet the cost targets set by government.
  • The government has exempted VAT from raw materials for the manufacture of the gadgets, to help lower the costs.

The design and implementation strategy of the digital literacy programme will be presented today by the ICT ministry, even as focus shifts to finding cheap gadgets.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich told the Nation that part of the plan is to assemble laptops locally to meet the cost targets set by government.

There were plans to partner with Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology to support them in setting up a local assembly plant, he said.

ICT Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i — who is now in charge of the project — said the framework would incorporate both the initial Class One laptop project and the Class Four to Eight variant.

“We will present the programme overview, its progress and its timeline of implementation as we unveil the new team assigned by our President to carry on with the project,” Mr Matiang’i said during a media briefing.

NEW PLAN

The project, which was allocated Sh17.58 billion in the 2015/2016 Budget, was one of the main promises by Jubilee in its campaign. In its new plan, Kenya is copying from Brazil and Rwanda, which successfully launched digital learning projects in primary schools.

The government has exempted VAT from raw materials for the manufacture of the gadgets, to help lower the costs.

The project, which was initially under the docket of Education Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi, is currently being handled by a team headed by the ICT ministry.

Others are the Energy and Industrialisation ministry, the National Treasury and the Attorney-General’s office, who have the mandate of ensuring 1.2 million pupils in 11,078 primary schools get laptops in the next two years.

The project was to begin a year ago, but was hampered by court cases and tendering issues.

President Kenyatta ordered the changes in May. The new team has been meeting frequently to work on the framework and change the manner of delivery.