Computers4Africa

Round up Africa World Cup

2010-07-20T11:18:00.002+01:00

Well, that’s it. The first World Cup on the African continent is over, and in the final it was clear that Spain deserved to win it, becoming the ninth winner of a World Cup, the first side to win the tournament after losing their opening game (1-0 against Swizerland), the first European side to World Cup outside of Europe, the lowest-scoring winner of a World Cup so far (they scored only eight goals in the tournament) and the first winner of a World Cup in Africa. But what of the African teams?

With six African nations competing, the prospects seemed good for at least a couple of them to make an impression in this year’s tournament: but one by one, it became clear that this was not to be their time.

The hosts were unlucky to concede late in their opening game, earning them a draw that proved insufficient to propel them out of the group stage even after their 2-1 victory over France later on.

A promising Côte D’Ivoire got drawn in a “Group of Death” for the second tournament running and were edged out of a second-round place on goal difference after Portugal blasted North Korea 7-0.

Algeria, probably lucky to be in the tournament to start with thanks to their surprise 1-0 victory over African Cup of Nations holders Egypt in Omdurman, showed impressive team spirit at times and held a sub-par England side to a goalless draw but still proved unable to record a debut World Cup victory.

Cameroon fell victim to their own poor preparation and infighting, losing all of their group-stage games in spite of being Africa’s highest-ranked team and boasting the prodigious talent of Samuel Eto’o, among others.

Nigeria had high hopes and high expectations coming into the tournament, but a poor run of form, poor discipline against Greece and some desperately bad luck against South Korea led to a first-round dismissal that Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan called an embarrassment to the nation.

All of which leaves us with Ghana, who this year equalled the best previous result for an African nation in reaching the quarter-finals, after beating the USA 2-1 in the last eight. The real injustice here is, of course, that they did enough to be the first African nation to reach the semifinals, and would have been there if it were not for a blatant, cynical handball on the Uruguayan goal line from Luis Suarez to deny them a last-minute winner. Asamoah Gyan missed the resulting spot-kick, and there was not enough time left in the game for Suarez’s red card to make any difference: In the resulting penalty shootout, the South Americans took the game 4-2.

Regardless of the outcome for the host continent however, the tournament’s organisation has been widely recognised as a success story. South Africa has shown that it can host a major international sporting event without any major problems, giving itself- and the continent of Africa- some excellent positive publicity in the process as well as attracting and successfully managing huge numbers of tourists from all around the world. The next question is- where do they go from here?

The infrastructure improvements and sporting arenas constructed in order to make this World Cup possible have the potential to provide a real benefit to South Africa, but a great many of the jobs created in their construction and operation for the tournament will now, in the short term at least, be lost as the howls of the ubiquitous vuvuzelas fall silent and the stadia lie empty; waiting, perhaps, for the next major sporting event to visit this country.

The World Cup has been a success story so far, but it must be made clear that this is only the beginning. Its legacy in South Africa will be judged, in the long run, by its lasting effect on the nation and not just what happened over five weeks in 2010. The future holds promise, but we are not there yet.

Update

2010-07-01T09:36:00.000+01:00

Côte d'Ivoire played impressively in their last group match against North Korea, but ultimately their 3-0 victory over North Korea proved insufficient as Portugal, in one of the dullest confrontations of the tournament so far, drew 0-0 with Brazil to take them one point clear of the West African hopefuls. The Elephants will be able to take away positives from their World Cup experience, with two strong performances, but you do have to wonder what they might have achieved in any of the other groups.

This means that Ghana are carrying the hopes of Africa with them in their quarter-final against Uruguay this Friday. The Black Stars have impressed this year, in spite of a group stage loss to Germany- victory over an impressive Serbian team and a passionate display in the last 16 against the USA have so far seen them equal the best World Cup performance by an African team, following Cameroon (1990) and Senegal (2002) to be the third African team to reach the quarter-final stage of a World Cup.

They will have to be on top of their game to proceed beyond Uruguay. The South Americans are on form this tournament, and apart from a shaky start against a French team that had yet to collapse into anarchy they have won every game they have played. On the other hand, it could be argued that they have not really been tested yet- and the questions posed of their defence by the South Korean team on Saturday indicate that it is not impossible to score against them. If the Black Stars can replicate the form they showed in the first half against the USA, they will definitely be in with a chance!

Update

2010-06-28T15:28:00.000+01:00

Well, the group stages are almost over but there are still a few teams with everything to play for- and a few teams for whom progression has already faded as a tantalising dream, missed either by a whisker or a country mile. Here’s Computers 4 Africa’s take on the tournament so far:

It’s been a turbulent time for the hosts. South Africa did well in their opener against Mexico, putting in a spirited performance against an excellent Association Football team. Bafana Bafana did less well against the marauding Uruguay side- but then, so did everybody in Group A- but they bounced back to give a spirited, vintage performance against an admittedly fractured French side. Ultimately, it wasn’t enough- they fell short on goal difference at the last- but with a point score equal to that of second-placed rivals Mexico they can leave the tournament with their heads held high. Honestly nobody expected them to do well in this tournament, and recording a win against France- even a France team as fractious and divided as that on display yesterday- is no mean achievement.

Cameroon have had a torrid time of it, the African Cup of Nations quarter-finalists losing both of their opening games against Denmark and Japan. The Danish side is well-regarded, the Japanese a little more unknown- though Cameroon’s widely publicised problems with team coach Pul Le Guen can’t have helped. Their only remaining hope to salvage some face from this tournament comes against the Netherlands on Friday, but given that the Dutch are expected to do very well in this World Cup and will want to keep their momentum up after winning both of their opening games, it will not be easy. Indomitable the Lions may be, but for this tournament they have been beaten back.

Nigeria came achingly close to qualifying for a place in the last 16 yesterday, Argentina’s convincing win over Greece meaning that they just needed to win their game against the South Koreans. With veteran player Kanu back in the team and Yakubu leading the charge, they looked likely to do it at numerous stages throughout the game, too- they led 1-0 during the first half and had numerous chances to put another in even in the closing stages at 2-2, with Yakubu surely feeling disappointed with his miss in the 68^th minute. Nigeria did finally produce the exciting, attacking football they are capable of in this game, but you can’t help but think that if they’d brought their A-game out before, particularly against an inferior Greece side, they would be celebrating today instead of heading home disappointed.

Côte D’Ivoire must surely be rueing their abysmal luck in the draw. For the second World Cup running they were put in a “Group of Death,” and while they’ve done well against some stern opposition and they’re not technically out of the tournament yet there was always going to be a mountain for them to climb and it’s going to take something of a miracle for them to progress at this stage. A draw against Portugal gave them a respectable start, and there is no shame in losing to Brazil- but it is the result achieved by Portugal against North Korea, a game the Elephants had no control over, which has made their final task all but impossible. It is well within their ability to beat the North Korean side, make no mistake- but with a goal difference of nine to make up, they must surely be hoping that the Brazilians put in some serious demolition work of their own if they are to have any real hope of qualifying.

Algeria have managed to punch a little above their weight in this tournament. Aided by an abysmal showing from England, they are technically still able to qualify- although it would take a win over an in-form United States team and a victory for England for them to do it, which seems unlikely at this stage given that the States will absolutely be looking to win the game in order to seal their place in the last sixteen and England- as you almost certainly know- have been playing extremely badly so far this tournament. Nonetheless, expect the Desert Foxes to play their hearts out this afternoon- a last-16 place would be a fantastic achievement for them.

All of which leaves us with Ghana. The Black Stars need at least a draw with the Germans to make sure of their progression into the last 16, giving them the best chance of any African side. They will still stand a good chance at progressing as long as they don’t lose by more than one goal this afternoon, though that would put them at the mercy of the Serbian team- if the Serbs beat Australia, then Ghana must win or draw.

The issue here is, of course, that they are playing against Germany. You can never expect the Germans to be anything less than fully committed, especially at a World Cup, and they will be a dangerous side to face regardless of their poor form against Serbia last Friday. Expect a tough match.

Ghana

2010-06-28T15:27:00.000+01:00

The Ghanaian team dominated their Group D match against Serbia on Sunday, as the Black Stars got off to the ideal World Cup start with a 1-0 victory against their head coach Milovan Rajevac’s hotly tipped compatriots. With a weak Australia still to play, they are moving tantalisingly close to the last 16, with the best result of any African team so far. The only blip on their horizon- and it’s a big blip, let’s be honest- is the ever-threatening German team that thrashed Australia 4-0 over the weekend in an aggressive, clinical display.

Australia qualified easily from their World Cup group this time around, but their form does not look like it has carried over into the finals tournament: Ghana will be looking forward to their match on Saturday (19^th June) and definitely hoping for a win.

The Serbian side that Ghana beat has also looked promising in the qualifiers, and was not entirely without teeth on Sunday either- they are still looking to qualify for the second round and will definitely consider it achievable in spite of the certainty of a tough game against Germany on Friday (18^th June). If they can score points this week, they should not be counted out!

The Germans are not the terrifying proposition that they once were, but they’re always going to threaten big things at a World Cup finals tournament. They’ve reached more semifinals than any other team in the world, and won the tournament more times than anybody apart from Brazil. Their team has recently undergone significant change, and the inexperience of some of the newer players may yet show this year: However, their demolition of Australia set down an imposing marker for the other teams in their group. Germany will expect to qualify for the last 16 at the top of their group, and will be disappointed with anything less than a semifinal place this year.

Ghana themselves have one of the most successful footballing histories of any African nation- the Black Stars have won the African Cup of Nations a full four times, were runners-up this year and are certainly on form coming into this World Cup. Their game against Serbia showed some very convincing attacking play and some solid defending- the only real worry on the footballing side was the lack of a clear finisher at the front: It eventually took a penalty earned for a handball in the Serbian box for striker Asamoah Gyan to put the ball in contact with the Serbian net. However, their disciplined play and attacking ethos mean that they’re well-placed to go through to the second round!

Ghana’s success on the football pitch mirrors its success at home- it is rated as one of the most stable and best- governed nations in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the Ibrahim Index of African Governance, and its abundant natural resources have helped to reduce the percentage of its population below fifty per cent and give it quite a good GDP by African standards. On the other hand almost thirty per cent still live in poverty, just under half of the population cannot read or write and the country is still dependant on foreign aid and the national debt. There is still, then, plenty of room for improvement in Ghana, not least in the education system- and plenty of space for Computers 4 Africa, with your support, to get involved!

Cameroon

2010-06-23T11:52:00.002+01:00

Cameroon promised much before this World Cup kicked off, being one of the first African nations to qualify. With Inter Milan striker Samuel Eto’o and Arsenal midfielder Alex Song in the side, they looked set to produce some exciting attacking football, but unfortunately that failed to materialise in their opening 1-0 loss to Japan. Things changed against Denmark and the Indomitable Lions made a roaring start against the aging Scandinavian side, but unfortunately their weak defensive play and a certain nervousness in finishing proved to be their downfall. As a result, Cameroon have the unfortunate distinction of being the first African side to be eliminated from the World Cup after eventually losing 2-1.

The Japan game will be considered an opportunity missed by many followers of Cameroon’s disappointing campaign, as the Samurai Blue did not have a particularly stellar match- but some decidedly risky experimentation from coach Paul Le Guen, along with some understandable early World Cup nerves left the Lions seeming lost and uncertain. The Japanese were arguably still worse off, but they managed a goal against the run of play in the first half and Cameroon could not find a reply.

Against Denmark, Cameroon fared better: With Eto’o back in his customary central attacking position and Alex Song back on the pitch, the Indomitable Lions scored in the first half for an early lead: However, several missed chances and a couple of defensive blunders saw the Danes regain an even footing later in the first half, and a cooler nerve on the firing line saw them draw ahead in the second. The game itself was fantastic, exciting football, and Cameroon were continuing to create good chances well into the second half- but unfortunately they failed to capitalise again, and will now be unable to progress beyond the group stage.

If the Cameroonian team is to leave this tournament with any battle honours, its last chance is against the Netherlands on Thursday evening. The Netherlands have already qualified for the knockout stages however, winning both of their opening matches against Denmark and Japan 2-0 and 1-0 respectively: They are unlikely to be easy opponents, as if either Japan or Denmark win their game earlier in the day the Netherlands will be playing to head up the group, potentially giving them an easier first knockout round.

Cameroon itself has a stable Government and a strong economy. Its GDP, at $2300, is one of the highest in sub-Saharan Africa, and it is the dominant partner in the Bank of Central African States. Strong investment in the colonial era and a relatively stable Government since independence have ensured that Cameroon’s infrastructure is quite robust, and diverse natural resources and fertile ground have kept the economy strong.

Unfortunately however, Cameroon’s strong economy is at the expense of significant inequality and widespread corruption, particularly in government. Almost half the population still lives in poverty, and just under a third are still unable to read or write: The universities are over-subscribed and it is hard to find qualified teachers, particularly in the north of the country. Education is our primary focus at Computers 4 Africa, and we believe that this is exactly the sort of situation where our help is needed the most: Cameroon is a country with huge potential, where there is ample opportunity for individuals with the right skills to bring themselves and their families out of poverty because there is a shortage of skilled workers. The people are hungry for education and advancement, and with your help we can give them what they need!

Computers 4 Africa has partnered with an NGO call HINT check out our website to see how they are doing!

Algeria

2010-06-21T10:37:00.000+01:00

Algeria’s football team, “Les Fennecs” (The Desert Foxes), was the first African side to beat a European national team at the World Cup when they defeated West Germany 2-1 in 1982. Since then they’ve had a turbulent path, qualifying for the finals this year in a huge playoff with reigning African Cup of Nations holders Egypt only to suffer a disappointing 1-0 defeat in their first game of the tournament against a poorly-regarded Slovenia team.

The remaining teams in Group C are England and the USA. Unfortunately for the Algerian side, both of these opponents will be fielding stronger teams than the Slovenia side that eventually made a shot count on Sunday, and while “Les Fennecs” did appear to be slightly better on the pitch against Slovenia until they had a man sent off, they are likely to struggle against the two group favourites.

On the other hand, the Algerians have shown a flair for taking on “tougher” opposition recently- notably they were semifinalists in the African Cup of Nations, and beat the eventual winners Egypt in order to secure their place at the World Cup finals.

Slovenia have been to the World Cup once before, in 2002, and in spite of avoiding defeat completely in their qualifying campaign they failed to score a point in the group stages of that tournament. This time around they finished second in their qualifying group to Slovakia, and won the drawn two-leg playoff against Russia by virtue of scoring one of their goals away from home. This year they have already bettered their previous record, recording a first World Cup victory as well as their first group-stage points. Given the strength of opposition in Group C, they will be delighted if they make it into the last 16.

The United States aren’t really known for their footballing prowess, but their national team has been steadily growing in strength since the 1980s, and they are currently a respectable 14^th in the FIFA world rankings after reaching the final of the 2009 Confederations Cup against Brazil. As such, they will definitely be looking to secure a place in the knockout stages this year, and are likely to put in a strong showing- if Algeria are to make it out of the group, they will need to play with purpose against this team.

And then there is of course England. England are almost certainly the toughest team in this group, with a FIFA ranking of 8^th in the World and a very strong qualifying campaign behind them in which they won nine of their ten games. They do have a reputation for dropping their game against “weaker” opposition, however, and also for making silly mistakes in big games. Algeria will certainly be hoping that the English team lives down to this reputation when they play them on the 18^th!

Algeria itself is currently in a period of almost unprecedented stability in its post-colonial era, and with that has come a lot of growth- including a dramatic increase in literacy rates and quality of education, resulting in an almost 70% literacy rate and a reduction in the number of Algerian citizens living in poverty to an estimated 23 per cent- lower than South Africa’s 50 per cent- in spite of the average GDP per person being only £7,100 (in SA the figure is £10,000).

Algeria has undergone a struggle for independence from the French as well as a series of long civil wars, and is still feeling the after-effects- but it is coming out the other end still fighting, with its education system and job market continually improving. If this continues, then who knows? Perhaps the Algerian team will start to become a force to reckon with in future tournaments!

Nigeria

2010-06-17T12:04:00.000+01:00

Nigeria played their first game of this year’s tournament on Saturday afternoon against a well-respected Argentine side. The Nigerian team, known as the Super Eagles, didn’t manage to pull off an upset, but can hold their heads high after a narrow 1-0 defeat as the Argentine side is well recognised as one of the most skilled and dangerous teams in world football.

The other teams in Group B are Greece and South Korea. Greece are the team in form at the moment, with a current FIFA ranking of 13, but suffered a surprise 2-0 loss to South Korea in the opening game, casting doubt on their pre-tournament status as favourites for the second qualifying spot (almost certainly behind Argentina). While their showing in the 2008 European Championship left little to write home about, the 2004 European Champions will still be disappointed if they don’t make it to the last 16.

South Korea, for all that they are relatively unknown as a footballing nation in the West, still field a strong national side. The 2002 World Cup semi-finalists and 2010 runners-up for the East Asian Championship will be looking to build on their recent form and have already given their fanatical support base something to shout about in this tournament with a 2-0 victory over Greece on Saturday. A player to watch out for is Captain and midfielder Park Ji-Sung, who plays for Manchester United and scored their second goal in this year’s tournament.

The Argentine team is widely expected to lead the group, and with one look at their team roster, it’s easy to see why. Their entire team is rife with first- choice players for top-flight European clubs, and not just on the pitch- the Argentine bench is as scary as a lot of first teams here at the tournament!

For all that though, the Argentines have had a bit of a rough patch in qualifying, and footballing icon Diego Maradona’s coaching credentials have yet to come through a major test. They also labour under the pressure of being a favourite to do well in the tournament, and football is a game well-known for unexpected results.

Nigeria aren’t exactly short of the sort of talent needed to take advantage of that either- with players like Everton’s Yakubu Aiyegbeni and Joseph Yobo in the side, they are ranked a respectable 21^st in the World according to FIFA, the third-highest ranking African side after Egypt and Cameroon. They are also the only African side to have made it to the last 16 of a World Cup on more than one occasion, qualifying in two of their three appearances in 1994 and 1998. Their group in 2010, in fact, presents them with some familiar faces- in 1994, they beat out Greece and Bulgaria to qualify second to Argentina! They will certainly be hoping for a repeat performance here, though their ambition will aim to lead them even further.

Nigeria itself has one of the largest economies in Africa, and one of the fastest growing economies in the World. It has a very influential presence in West African politics, all of which means that its relative stability since its return to democracy in 1999 is a good thing not just for Nigerians, but also for all of West Africa. However, the internal and international disputes that surrounded the 2007 elections, and the death of President Yar’Adua earlier this year, have served to indicate how fragile that stability still is- Nigeria has huge potential for growth and is one of the economic powers of the future, but it does labour under some heavy burdens.

While Nigeria’s economy is strong, for example, it is also the eighth most populous nation in the World, and roughly seventy per cent of its hundred and forty nine million citizens live in poverty. Nigeria’s natural resources are rich- it is an oil producer, among other things, and a member of OPEC- but problems with corruption still persist, and with the standard of education being generally poor, few Nigerians have the skills necessary to take advantage of the skilled jobs that foreign investment brings. That is one thing that we at Computers 4 Africa will be hoping to change, with your help, over the next few years.

South Africa

2010-06-16T11:00:00.003+01:00

South Africa’s football team, known as Bafana Bafana or “The Boys,” open the World Cup this afternoon with a game against Mexico, a game they will be hoping to win if they are to progress past the group stages in this tournament.South Africa have made it to two World Cup finals tournaments before- in 1998 and 2002- but they have only recorded one victory, 1-0 against Slovenia in 2002. They did not progress past the group stages in either tournament but recent form in the Confederations Cup last year, in which they came fourth, indicates that they have a good chance of improving on that showing this time around. They will certainly hope to avoid being the first host nation not to make it!

Aiming to stop that happening are France, Mexico and Uruguay- the other teams in qualifying group A. France have traditionally been a strong side, but their form has suffered in recent years and famously it took a Thierry Henry handball in the playoff with Ireland to qualify them for this year’s tournament. They should never be discounted, however- after all, they made it to the final of the last tournament in 2006 and they’re still ranked 9th in the World according to FIFA.

Mexico are also a potentially dangerous team, ranked 17th in the World according to FIFA and with a good run of form going into this year’s tournament. They deserve a lot of respect after defeating current champions Italy 2-1 in Brussels earlier this month, and they are strong contenders for a qualifying spot in Group A which means a win against them this afternoon would go a long way to securing South Africa’s last-16 hopes.

South Africa won’t have an easy time of it, however- not if Uruguay have anything to say about it at least! Uruguay are ranked 16th in the World according to FIFA, but with their World Cup pedigree they will never be satisfied with anything less than a tournament win- so qualifying won’t be an easy task! All in all, South Africa will have an uphill climb to make the last 16 of this tournament, in spite of their status as the host nation- it’s a strong group- but with their recent international form in the Confederations Cup they’re certainly in with a shout!

There is a certain extent to which this reflects South Africa’s wider position at the moment. Since Nelson Mandela retired from politics in 1999, the country has struggled to find a strong and respected leader who can unite the country, and with no credible opposition in Parliament the ANC has begun to show signs of the strain. Rumours of corruption, an energy grid that is already running within a hairs-breadth of full capacity and the continuing issue of widespread poverty remain problems for the South African government and people, and AIDS has reached near epidemic levels in some areas.

Many of these problems have been highlighted in the build-up to the World Cup. There have been rumours of backroom dealings and disappearances among dissenting councillors over the contracts to build several of the stadiums, and much of the promised local development for the communities around the arena sites has yet to materialise- leaving many areas with the incongruous sight of slum townships within a stone’s throw of a brand new world-class football stadium.

Yet, for all that, there is hope: South Africa’s economy remains strong, and its governance is still widely regarded as being among the best on the sub-Saharan continent. It has more heavy industry than most African nations and an 86 per cent literacy rate, as well as a relatively well developed infrastructure- the roads are some of the best in Africa! With slightly less than ten per cent of the population on the Internet and a poverty rate of about fifty per cent there is still a way to go- and a lot that Computers 4 Africa can do to help- but South Africa has some bright prospects in its future, and is well-placed to overcome its present challenges!

World cup fever

2010-06-16T10:54:00.004+01:00

The World Cup comes to Africa for the first time ever this year, and with no less than six African teams taking part, we at Computers 4 Africa thought it’d be a good idea to have a look at what’s going to be happening in South Africa over the next few weeks, and what it means for Africans to have the tournament hosted on their doorstep.

We will be running a series of stories throughout the next few weeks, examining each of the participating African nations in turn, as well as following their games as the tournament unfolds. We’ll start with the host nation, South Africa, who will be hoping for a win against Mexico when they kick off the tournament on Friday if their hopes of reaching the knockout stage are to be fulfilled. No host nation has ever failed to make it past the first group stage of a World Cup so far, and South Africa is certainly hoping not to break that that record.

October- so far

2009-10-23T14:31:00.002+01:00

Another month nearly past and another lot of computers coming through our doors and some very exciting progress made. The last week has been mainly spent talking and thinking about the marketing budget and discussing vitally important issues like- what makes us keep a pen, who looks at their mouse mat and whether pictures of children picking their noses are amusing, cute or just wrong.We got a new stand for exhibitions which has already been put into use as Faith and I travelled up to London. We had a lots of fun, met some interesting peopel and took some lovely photos. We also called the office to check in a few times which lead to some hi jinks but that is a tale for another time...
Have you all booked for Christmas meals yet? I have picked my work meal, its one of the nicest traditions along with secret santa, but somehow I always feel that thinking about it prior to December is premature but post October is too late.. Oh well

Desk wrestling

2009-09-25T14:43:00.005+01:00

This week in the office we have been desk wrestling, mainly Ida and myself, but also a certain amount with Lydia. Lots of this is caused by the appalling musical taste of my colleagues. Each member of our team has varied tastes and is given a couple of hours a day to play music on last FM. Despite initially aiming to be fair, we have moved away from this with people hogging the radio, with some people taking over for the full 20hrs that they are in the office, naming no names, obviously (it's Ida). Desk wresting involve general irritation & pushing but also a little sabotage (pressing esc is a favourite move).
We are also saying goodbye to Lydia (aka Tarka the otter) who is deserting us for more exotic climbs (11,000 miles away in New Zealand). During this week from her planning alone we have learnt about US visas, where to get good strappy tops in September and what sport sandals are (essentially trainers with holes in) and why anyone would want to buy them.
We have also trying to get Faith married off. Faith herself is not adverse to the idea. We spent 15minutes on Thursday teasing her about it, then burst into giggles as we realised that someone had overheard some of our conversation.

Faith’s Hair

2009-09-14T10:13:00.002+01:00

We have achieved that Friday feeling but unfortunately without the accompaniment of a crunchie bar. Today’s hot topic has been Faiths hair. Anyone who has someone fabulous in their office can understand the great fun as we comment on said persons changes in outfit and hair. Faith on Monday said “I’ve only changed my hair once this week” and I am proud to announce that she has managed to change her hair twice since then. She has also wowed us all by coordinating her shoes, hair, clothes and shoes. We will have to get some photo’s of the fabulousness.
We have also decided on having a penny box. Sharon apologises for everything, Faith uses the word thinga and I have an appetite for office biscuits. I’m not sure what we will do with the kitty maybe it’ll be enough for our staff Christmas lunch. We are keeping our ears open for Lydia and Ida's habits but except for Lydia very politely harassing her GP I’ve got nothing.
This afternoon has been spent in a meeting looking at strap lines and exhibition boards, Faith and I are off to London, Beware! We will spending time with people from the warehouse industry so we are very excited to see if and where we can get new sites. The more sites the more computers.

September fun

2009-09-08T11:52:00.001+01:00

September, the season of new starts, shiny shoes, the end of summer. Well, for some of us. In C4A we have lots of new starts, Sharon has joined our team and brought her own style of fun to the office. We are also going to be moving into the main office as we have expanded into the offices next door. So lots of people new people and new horizons. On the subject of schools we have been supported by local schools we have received over 100 computers in the last month from a variety of schools go have a look at our news.

Smashing computers

2009-08-28T16:25:00.001+01:00

I have always fancied connecting and sledgehammer and a computer, they seem like much less work than a wall and that the ensuing sound effects would be both satisfying and loud. This week I have been reading articles about what happens with old computers when you dispose of it and especially what happens to the hard disk. One of the options was, yes you guessed it, smashing it up with a hammer- which perhaps does not have the dramatic element of smashing it up with a sledgehammer but I am sure satisfaction would be great but is it really the best way to destroy the data?
One of the best tools available for wiping the data off hard drives is called "Darik's Boot and Nuke" or DBAN for short. You can download DBAN for free from http://dban.sourceforge.net/. Run this tool properly and give it the time it needs to go through the hard drive and the data is gone forever. We use a similar tool in our workshops called EBAN- according to our expert it “overwrites the entire hard drive with a pseudo-random pattern of numbers that makes it impossible for data to be recovered”. I’m not entirely sure what this means but for those who do understand these kinds of things I’m sure it makes sense.
So my plans for a sledgehammer will have to be shelved, instead Ida suggests I take up line dancing, Lydia suggests crochet, Faith suggests to wait for another opportunity to smash things. You will have to wait and see what happens....

Walruses

2009-08-24T14:31:00.003+01:00

The topic for this afternoon in the office has been what would you do if you found a walrus on your bed? Your answer would clearly depend on personal sensibilities and level of silliness. I initially thought of selling it on Gumtree which would be both amusing and earn a little cash, another clear option is tickling it or even getting some kind of animal rescue to come and collect it. This question brought many thoughts to my head including; how would one get a walrus up stairs, what would be the point and the inevitability of someone purchasing said walrus on gumtree/eBay and it then being put onto the 6'o clock news. It is somewhat disgruntling to think that this kind of silliness raises more awareness about issues than all of our work. The BBC magazine recently commented on the prevalence of people giving up/taking up a year of something (credit cards, sex, saying no, ethical living) to make a point. I did briefly consider giving up computers but then realised 90% of my job is based on using my computer. After having my mobile mown over (by a lawn mower -seriously) I realised how much of my life is reliant on technology. I'm not sure I would be willing to live without it. One of our colleagues has returned from Tanzania with some amazing tales of the impact we are having but everywhere he visited there was a request for more computers. Very excitingly Llyods Pharmacys have donated 700 PC's which will no doubt go some way to fufilling the requests however there is such a hunger for learning in Africa that there will always be more schools to send to.

Landfill

2009-07-14T16:17:00.002+01:00

Well its been a brilliant start to the week, the weird and the wonderful continues to be the norm in the media team. I have come to the slightly concerning realisation that people actually read what is written here. No matter I will continue in the same vein any way.
Today's highlight has been calling the local waste management to try to find out if a statement I made for the front page is correct. Now for me the idea that once you throw something away it is not possible to go find it again was both clear and obvious. However, other elements in our team felt this could be erroneous. Thus Ida and I called around the local landfills, what fun for a Tuesday afternoon, we discovered that people who work at landfills are very straight talking and that there is no chance of getting something back once you've chucked it. One point Lowri.

Strawberry fields forever

2009-07-03T15:03:00.012+01:00

by : Ida Gaye

A beautiful summer sunset, friends and family, and fresh picked strawberries led to a memorable evening for the C4A Crew. The event was hosted by Stonepitt Farm in Sevenoaks which turned out to be a perfect setting for chillin’ out; and chill out we did! Once we arrived we were given baskets for strawberry and raspberry picking. For some of us this was a first-time experience, and therefore, some thought the bigger the strawberry the sweeter it will taste. This belief caused the strawberry picking to take longer than normal for some (not naming names: Avril Mhunduru).
When our baskets were full, we sat down for a picnic that was (if I do say so myself) delicious and full of variety (Thanks George ), and as the sun came down over the Kentish countryside we were graced by the charming sound of Dan Clews in concert (http://www.danclews.co.uk/). We also got to see our very own Martin Clews jam on the guitar, and his compadre the ‘Coconut Man from Goa’ singing songs that gave us joy and the desire to travel to GoaJ All in all...it was a great time and we’ve got the pictures to prove it!
Until next time...

Fremlins Walk

2009-06-29T16:42:00.006+01:00

Well we had an awesome time on Friday and Saturday trying to get Maidstone locals excited about Computers 4 Africa. We learnt how to operate helium canisters, about manual handling (which sounds more amusing than it is) and how to put up a gazebo.

We had competitions based on how many leaflets we could give out, which I won but looking at this photograph its' small wonder.

We spent the day hearing the cries of small children as they released the helium balloons which had been given to them. I'm never sure that giving them away is a kind thing. If they don't let them go, then their siblings are jealous when they get home, if their siblings don't pop them then there is always the opportunity to cry when the balloon finally deflates as it inevitably does. Fortunately for us we were the bringers of joy not the fortellers of doom.
The sun was bright and wearing black was not a brilliant plan but we had a lot of fun. Watch this space for the video of Ida and Faith dancing (if they let me use it). We also had lots of fun decorating a computer for "Pimp my computer" competition. Lydia and I covered ourselves in gold paint and looked a little special (Lydia spent the day trying to hide the gold paint that covered her, I changed my top before we left). Check out our creation below, I'm not sure the picture does it justice.

Introductions

2009-06-24T12:17:00.004+01:00

Well we have had a hectic week already. We have planned a day in our local shopping centre to raise awareness, the level of preparation is intense and the amount of concern there is about helium balloons slightly amusing. I know that we have to risk assess everything but sometimes I wonder about this country's sanity.

On a lighter note I have been asked to introduce us all (PR team). We will provide photos but no one was looking their best today so couldn't possibly enjoy taking them (some of the team enjoy posing but I will wait until we have the photos to comment on that, some things have to be seen to be believed).

Ida- Pure American and pure African and can switch accents so easily that she can confuse. (Ida has lived in the Gambia and America).

Faith- You can hear Faith coming from 2 houses away.

Lowri- that's me. I'm very sensible and calm, honest!

Lydia- Actually is calm although can think sideways and has Pimp'd a computer very creatively.

Jessica- Has fabulously curly hair and a very dry sense of humor. Leads us into the forays of theme song writing with both panache and silliness. During period of intense concentration often breaks into song, relieving tension and making us giggle

Sam- Gives us her sage opinion on matters of the heart. Sam joins us on Wednesdays and wrestles with the laptop in the corner.

Avril- Has tried to sell other members of the team for Zimbabwean money. Best to leave it there I think.

Friday Madness- African dramas

2009-06-19T15:04:00.008+01:00

Today we have been educated in African soap operas. Faith and I entertained the office with a song of such amazing quality it wasn't so much shocking as appalling. This was then completely blown out of the water by Faith and Ida doing a sketch, with overacting and Nigerian accents. We need a video camera to capture the fun.

We are trying to think of Ghetto names for everyone in the office.
Jessica ->Jessca
Lowri->La (Is that even slightly ghetto?)
I'm stuck on Lydia Jessca calls her Lyds, but once again its not very Ghetto. To be honest the idea of any of us being ghetto is mildly ridiculous, we will have to have a dress up day (why do only kids and drunk people get to do it?).

Perhaps we should have a Scottish day, with Haggis and kilts. We are launching 5 new sites in Scotland (you can see all of our sites on www.computers4africa.org.uk). We got working on informing the local media etc about our arrival. The Scottish are fantastic, have such great phone accents, and Scotland is a gorgeous country.

Sunglasses day

2009-06-17T11:38:00.007+01:00

We have been inspired today to take up the cause of Sunglasses wearers everywhere. After a serious mornings work the caffeine has clearly hit us and we introduced to the world "Sunglasses day". Jess and Lydia are already sporting an exciting look with sunglasses planted firmly onto their noses.

This mornings highlight has been hearing that the Deputy Lord Mayor of Exeter is going to be supporting our campaign in Exeter. This is awesome although due to the timing we will have to road trip it to and from Exeter in 1 day. In each community we look for leaders and celebrity's willing to spend some time with us supporting the work we do and encouraging locals and businesses to donate.

We are also trying out a variety of tunes for our theme tune, the list so far;

Last night a PC saved my life. (to the tune oflast night a DJ saved my life)

Like a PC (Like a virgin)

PC user (Womanizer)

We will Connect you (We will rock you)

Yesterday (Yesterday all my computers here to stay, Now they have gone to Africa today, I believe in C4A)

OK we spent 5 minutes developing some of these. Hopefully soon you will be able to see our collective amazingness on video. These are pretty special.

We have also been contacting schools in Tanzania, which is very exciting. I really hope we hear back from some of the young people who get to use the computers which we send out. I am old enough to remember using the single computer in the corner (bring out the violins) so I can appreciate what it is like to live without computers to some degree. We had one really cute letter from a head girl. The bit about being able to touch the computers was really super heart squeezingly cute.

As I am doing this in work time I do feel I need to point out that you personally should look around you and check you have no spare working IT equipment and if you do you should be looking to do something good with it- like give it to us.

http://www.computers4africa.org.uk//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=99&Itemid=52

Welcome to the PR department of Computers 4 Africaaaaaaaa!

2009-06-16T15:23:00.000+01:00

Well we have created our first blog.
Computers 4 Africa is a charity that sends computers to Africa (it's all in the name of the charity, someone clearly thought about that). Just to let you know Ida has removed a fly from the office, which really caps off an afternoon of concentration busting activities, which have included seeing how many people have our exact names, finding people doing Beyonce dances on Youtube our favorite was the Saturday night live one with Justin Timberlake (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBC7pilGoPc), the Jonas brothers doing the same is entertaining but after a minute you realise he only has one move and its boring from there.
Back to the more serious part of work... We are plotting a video blog which is going to be amazing!!! The collective creative juices led to a meeting which no ones mascara survived and a lot of people came to check we were actually working. All of this is in a good cause, trying to raise the profile and get people to give us their computers that they no longer use but are in good condition. I, (this is Lowri by the way), have been calling businesses asking for their computers, which has lead to a couple of confusing moments when I get nervous and say something silly which inevitably leads to them thinking I want ALL of their computers. I'm not saying people should give us the ones they are currently using, just ones which are old but working we can't send our junk to Africa. Its not right!