We are practical idealists:

We believe that without a certain level of financial backing all ideas - even the most noble - remain purely theoretical. We live to see our ideas flourish and grow.

eKhaya ICT is a commercial IT enterprise with a variety of clients in Africa and Europe. Our core business is providing professional services and developing software for non-profit organisations, which share our ideals – namely that Internet access can and is playing an important role in the peaceful, democratic development of impoverished and marginalised rural areas (MRAs). We believe that the Internet holds far greater development potential than classical infrastructure development projects: it offers real participation and self-help possibilities.

In MRAs, schools fulfill an important role bringing ideas from outside into village life and exchanging ideas within the classroom environment, merging them with the established culture.  That is why schools are the location of choice when introducing computer technologies to MRAs and why our plans for ICT related autonomous development are also centred on schools.

Together with our regional and international partners, we have adopted and are striving towards the following vision: In the future, all villages in MRAs should have use of ICT centres located at schools, which allow all the members of the community, children and adults, access to the Internet. Simple equipment, powered by renewable energy sources (solar) and connected to the Internet via wireless relays and/or satellite connections should be installed and handed over to hand-picked, responsible entrepreneurs, who will be the operators of the centres. Educational access to the facilities must be secured: Children are our future and their education and social competencies are paramount for the well-being of our planet – the assistance of teachers is of utmost importance and should not be forgotten. After school hours, the ICT centre should be open for public use and it must offer a set of practically useful electronic services to the community.  A training programme and immediate assistance from the owner of the centre must be available to those who have no computing experience and illiterates. We see this is an opportunity to boost self-confidence in the community, to create jobs (e.g. through ecommerce) and to familiarize communities with new technologies that enable a knowledge society.

At the moment, we are working with an American partner, SELF, on a pilot project funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in an MRA in the former Transkei area. eKhaya ICT is providing the vision, project coordination on the ground and software development of new services for the learners and community. Governmental, tertiary education and contracting partners are installing infrastructure and providing training. Through this process we are coming closer to improving the lives of the members of impoverished rural communities sustainably and making our vision reality.

 

Innovation, new ideas that work and move the world are ever increasingly the products of teams that work closely together and are allowed the freedom to experiment in an autonomous way. Freedom also implies responsibility. At eKhaya ICT we cultivate an atmosphere where teams are able to develop responsible working ethics in response to the freedom they gain.

We also motivate our teams by supplying plentiful opportunity to identify with the goals of the projects, including on site experience, a pleasant working atmosphere and support in growth on a personal level, through continuing education.

Freedom and responsibility are important for innovation, but in order to deliver one does need a level of accountability. We apply the latest management methods in the form of SCRUM to provide this.

 

 

The Eastern Cape region of South Africa is a place where African and European culture, as well as impoverished and developed areas meet to create an amazing societal cocktail that sizzles with energy. In its beautiful natural heritage the Eastern Cape (one of the poorest areas of South Africa) inspires us to find our common humanity and to strive to find solutions to pressing practical problems.

The proximity of developed and developing areas eases the engineering and testing of new solutions. The reward of practicable solutions is immediately visible and very welcome.

And, besides all of that, we are at home here.