Turns out, the group's strategy in India differs dramatically from the methods they've used thus far in other countries like Peru and Haiti, where they sign exclusive deals with federal governments, who then purchase and distribute the laptops.
But India, with an enormous and diverse populace, presents a unique challenge. So, for the first time, OLPC has teamed up with a private partner to help build infrastructure and ensure distribution.
The Digital Bridge Foundation, part of mega-corporation the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, has been tapped to help orchestrate the group's initial forays into India.
"There are more schoolchildren in Mumbai than in all of Uruguay," Negroponte points out. "So scale in India is entirely different."
Rather than relying on the Centre to purchase and distribute the little green-and-white laptops, OLPC will look to private corporations and state governments.
Image: The OLPC laptop project financially supported by individuals, businesses and foundations aims at a constructive model of education, where the child is exposed to tools other than their regular syllabus. | Photograph: Pal Pillai/AFP/Getty Images.
Also read: World's 8 most expensive mobiles
Advertisement
