[OLPC India] India Digest, Vol 23, Issue 11

[Satish Jha OLPC]

We need to think differently about the issues.. not from how we see when we
are in the government where our role is how to stop a good idea from
happening.. Rather we need to think of how to make a good idea work..

While I do not agree with nearly any of the observations made below and am
witnessing how things can be and are being changed, I would prefer some
other members of this group to take it forward.

On Sat, Nov 1, 2008 at 2:21 PM, K. K. Subramaniam <subbukk at gmail.com> wrote:

> > What is wrong with using a $188 computer as collateral for the loan to
> > buy it?
> The asset depreciates 60% every year. So a long term loan from banks on
> commercial terms is ruled out.
>
> > What about the economic opportunities that it opens up for
> > families, even before their children go through school? I want
> > computers for preschoolers, to be paid back out of the economic growth
> > of the entire community.
> Yes, that is possible but a lot more infrastructure (particularly in micro
> power generation and communication) needs to get into place before
> computers
> can become economically viable. The communication infrastructure will be in
> place in the next few years. There are people working on the micro power
> generation problem (see www.selco-india.com) but we still don't have our
> arms
> around the problem.
>
> > > 2. INR 15,000 is a huge amount for most people. Capital is expensive in
> > > India and educational loans would cost upwards of 11%. Over a decade
> the
> > > loan amount would triple. An XO would depreciate long before a decade.
> >
> > You are assuming that computers for schoolchildren have no economic
> > value.
> Incorrect. My statement was that children will not be able to generate
> enough
> money to compensate for interest cost and deprecation in the asset value.
> The
> situation gets better for the 14+ age group but that is not where the  bulk
> of the problem lies.
>
> > This turns out not to be the case. Elementary school children
> > have been found to be doing agricultural research for their families
> > on the Internet.
> Children in the 14+ age group also earn money doing chores around the
> village,
> but what about younger children? Basic education for young children should
> not be tied to their ability to earn money.
>
> > Anybody who makes anything that can be sold outside
> > the community, such as art, music, clothing, crafts, and much more,
> > can get into e-commerce on sites such as Overstock.com, Shopping.com,
> > eBay.com, and others. People in microfinance programs connected with
> > e-commerce have been known to go from an income of $1/day to $6/hour.
> Yes. but power and communication infrastructure is not yet in place to
> enable
> this to happen. It will take a few more years. Again this model will work
> for
> older children but not for younger children. There is a law against
> employing
> young children in commerce.
>
> Subbu
>



-- 
-- Satish Jha
President & CEO
One Laptop per Child, OLPC India
One Cambridge Center,
Cambridge, MA 02142
T: 301 841 7422
F: 301 560 4909
IN: +91 98 75 68 39 50
www.laptop.org
_________________________________
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satish_Jha
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