<u>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:<br></u><br><b>Bank of South Pacific donates 1000 laptops to Pacific children:<br></b><i><br></i><div><i>Joins regional coalition as OLPC Oceania’s Lead Private Sector Partner</i><div><br>Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, April 30, 2012 – One Laptop per Child (OLPC) and the Bank of the South Pacific (BSP), the region’s leading bank, have announced an exciting strategic partnership to advance South Pacific education, kicking off with a donation of 1000 revolutionary ‘XO’ laptops to Pacific children.<br>
<br>In its first act in the new role of Lead Private Sector Partner for OLPC Oceania, BSP will donate the educational computers to children in three OLPC project schools in the Solomon Islands and Fiji. In coming months, BSP plans to provide more support for children in Papua New Guinea as it spearheads private sector support for OLPC.</div>
<div><br></div><div><div>OLPC’s Regional Director for Oceania, Mr Michael Hutak, thanked BSP for its generosity and welcomed the new partnership as a breakthrough for Pacific education. “With BSP’s strong corporate leadership in the Pacific, its large regional branch network and its strong commitment to community participation, we look forward to a long and effective partnership, not just to our ongoing mutual benefit but more importantly to the long-term advancement of Pacific education.” </div>
<div><br></div><div>BSP Group Chief Executive Officer Mr Ian B Clyne said the new partnership was a perfect fit with the Bank’s corporate social responsibility goals and would broaden the reach and impact of the BSP Children’s Foundation, complementing programs such as BSP’s widely-praised BSP School Kriket program. The partnership continues BSP’s commitment to Pacific development and follows a recent Fiji$100,000 donation to emergency relief efforts following the devastating floods in Fiji. </div>
<div><br></div><div>As Lead Private Sector Partner, BSP will join the regional initiative OLPC Oceania, which is a coalition of national governments, educators, donor agencies, academia, the private sector, civil society and community organizers, all working to assist Pacific Island countries to establish the OLPC concept in schools. Mr Hutak said BSP will bring much-needed private sector expertise and know-how to the Pacific initiative. </div>
<div><br></div><div>Currently there are OLPC projects running in 10 Pacific countries, with approximately 10,000 laptops being used by children in 50 schools. Across the globe OLPC has distributed more than 2.4 million laptops to poor children in 40 countries. </div>
<ul style="font-size:16px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><li style="margin-left:15px;font-size:medium"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Find out more at the <a href="http://olpcoceania.blogspot.com.au/2012/04/bank-of-south-pacific-donates-1000.html" target="_blank" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)">OLPC Oceania Blog</a>.</font></li>
<li style="margin-left:15px;font-size:medium"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">For the full Media Release <a href="http://www.box.com/s/c6cb891d73823db08322" target="_blank" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)">click here</a> </font><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">or go to </span><a href="http://www.box.com/s/c6cb891d73823db08322" target="_blank" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;color:rgb(17,85,204)">http://www.box.com/s/c6cb891d73823db08322</a></li>
</ul><p style="font-size:16px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"></p><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><div><div>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</div>
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div><b><font size="1">Media Contacts: </font></b></div><div><font size="1"><br></font></div><div><b><font size="1">Michael Hutak, Director, OLPC Oceania</font></b></div><div><font size="1">+61-412-001-052</font></div>
<div><font size="1"><a href="mailto:oceania@laptop.org">oceania@laptop.org</a></font></div><div><font size="1"><a href="http://olpcoceania.blogspot.com">http://olpcoceania.blogspot.com</a></font></div><div><font size="1"><br>
</font></div><div><b><font size="1">Jackie Lustig, OLPC Global</font></b></div><div><font size="1">+1-978-460-2236</font></div><div><font size="1"><a href="mailto:Jackie.a.lustig@gmail.com">Jackie.a.lustig@gmail.com</a></font></div>
<div><font size="1"><a href="http://www.laptop.org">www.laptop.org</a></font></div><div><font size="1"><br></font></div><div><b><font size="1">Julie Fraser, Head of Marketing & PR, BSP </font></b></div><div><font size="1">+675 305 7141</font></div>
<div><font size="1"><a href="mailto:jfraser@bsp.com.pg">jfraser@bsp.com.pg</a></font></div><div><font size="1"><a href="http://www.bsp.com.pg">www.bsp.com.pg</a></font></div><div><font size="1"><br></font></div><div><b><font size="1">Barney Pondros, PR & Comms Mgr, </font></b></div>
<div><font size="1">T: + 675 305 7877, </font></div><div><font size="1"><a href="mailto:bpondros@bsp.com.pg">bpondros@bsp.com.pg</a></font></div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline">-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</div>
<div><br></div><div><font size="1"><b>About OLPC: </b>One Laptop per Child (OLPC) is a global non-profit organization, dedicated to </font></div><div><font size="1">creating educational opportunities for the world's poorest children. OLPC Oceania is a regional </font></div>
<div><font size="1">initiative to provide every child in basic education with a rugged, low-cost, low-powered, </font></div><div><font size="1">connected laptop, loaded with Pacific content designed to foster collaborative, self-empowered </font></div>
<div><font size="1">learning. We are seeking to reach over 700,000 children across 22 Pacific island nations. </font></div><div><font size="1"><br></font></div><div><font size="1"><b>About BSP:</b> BSP is Papua New Guinea and the South Pacific’s leading bank with 36 branches </font></div>
<div><font size="1">nationwide and 29 offshore branches in Fiji, Solomon Islands and Niue. BSP boasts the largest </font></div><div><font size="1">Branch, ATM and EFTPoS network and is leading the way with innovative banking products such </font></div>
<div><font size="1">as Mobile Banking. </font></div><div><font size="1"><br></font></div><div>-- </div></font><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;border-collapse:collapse">-- <br>Michael Hutak<br>Director, Oceania<br>
One Laptop per Child<br><a href="http://www.laptop.org/" style="color:rgb(51,51,204)" target="_blank">www.laptop.org</a><br><a href="http://olpcoceania.blogspot.com/" style="color:rgb(51,51,204)" target="_blank">http://olpcoceania.blogspot.com</a><br>
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