IT Education and Awareness for Local Needs Start at Young Age
Article by: Thomas (Mbokoma) Jonas

Introducing state-of-the-art Information Technology in Namibia is a topic that needs no introduction, but needs to be tackled from the root. Targeting schools with the implementation of OSS technology will bridge the gap between the technologically more developed countries and the Southern African nations much faster. Children are the future leaders and fast learners. Introducing them to OSS and making them familiar with the concept of non-proprietary solutions at an early stage is an investment in Namibia’s future. This is the stepping stone where developers and users will evolve from.

Knowing that OS software is free and the source code is accessible enables the desire for modification by new users to meet their contexts and languages. Hence, users become developers and are not trapped in follow up dependencies on particular vendors for upgrades and support.

The OSS model of software development offers greater opportunities for local skills and economic development. Recognized as the most stable and more secure then its proprietary counterparts, its less demanding and can help break the costly cycle of hardware upgrades to accommodate new software packages.

The main objective of an African based concept is to stimulate awareness and the adoption of implementing OSS solutions based on our infrastructures. The enrichment and empowering through education, broadens the understanding and skills among developing countries like Namibia