Durban - A South African company is on a nationwide mission to “uplift” children from impoverished communities, literally raising them “from the floor”, via the donation of portable desks to their schools.
According to recent statistics, more than 2.5 million schoolchildren do not have desks in this country, while countless others do not have a desk or table on which to complete their homework.
“The desk shortage numbers in South Africa are staggering and looking at other African countries, these figures become even more alarming,” said Lyle Krause, managing director for Klevr Desk.
“This is the crisis that we are tackling head-on. We are determined to provide solutions that allow children the opportunity to receive tuition in relative comfort at an age when information assimilation is critical.”
Klevr Desks is a locally conceived and manufactured innovation.
A pupil from Maqokomela Primary School in Ndwendwe, Siyabonga Mdlalose, described the desks as a luxury for which he and his schoolmates were very grateful.
The desk is a flatpack, collapsible, branded and portable unit, which comes with a chair – all as a single component.
The desk can withstand compressive loading of up to 100kg and is designed for learners from Grade 0 through to Grade 7.
Constructed from recyclable corrugated board, the one-piece design allows for easy assembly and dismantling. They are light and durable and can fit into backpacks.
In total, 350 desks were recently donated to community members in Ndwedwe by Sony Mobile and MTN, who are spearheading the initiative countrywide.
To date 2 000 have been distributed around the country.
Mark Fenzel, Sony Mobile sales director, said: “We are very proud to be part of a programme that creates a personal learning space for children in rural communities to be able to either do their homework, learn in the classroom or simply, provide them with an uninterrupted sense of ownership within the peer or family environments.”
The fundamental purpose of the desks, he said, is to get children off the floor, affording them a comfortable, ergonomically correct seated position so that they are able to learn effectively with dignity.
“Having seen the positive impact the desks has made to children’s lives throughout South Africa, we are extremely excited at what we’ve been able to do to help uplift local communities,” said Fenzel.
The programme, called the “Wildlands’ Tree-preneur” encourages community members to grow indigenous trees in their areas in exchange for the desks. - Independent on Saturday