Chinese company Huawei donated the first set of netbooks distributed under the One Laptop Per Family (OLPF) initiative but the next batch of computers will be procured by an open international competitive tender, President Bharrat Jagdeo said yesterday.
“The 142 computers that we distributed at the launch, we got as a gift from Huawei. We did not buy those computers, we got them as a gift from Huawei,” Jagdeo stated during a press briefing at State House. Huawei is the same company that has been contracted by the government to connect internet networks across Guyana as part of its e-governance thrust. The same firm has partnered with E-networks, a firm owned by the son of a former PPP/C minister and senior party executive, to bring the WiMax network to Guyana. At the recent official launch of the OLPF programme at the International Conference Centre, President Jagdeo did not reveal that the Lenovo brand computers that were ceremonially handed over were a gift from the Chinese company.
Jagdeo’s answers yesterday came amid continuing concerns about the transparency and wisdom of the project and in the backdrop of the flubbing of an answer on the cost of the netbooks by a government minister during parliamentary questioning.
He said that so far the government has spent less than $1M to purchase 5 laptops for the administrative staff of the OLPF. “We made it clear at the launch that we will go to a public tender for the laptops that we are going to buy. We set aside $1.8 billion in the budget and we will go to tender for those laptops. We are not going to put a proprietary name. But they will have to meet the specifications,” Jagdeo said. He added that the engineer’s estimate for each laptop is US$300. While he initially said that the government will be looking to purchase laptops, it was later disclosed that it is indeed netbooks that will be purchased. Questions have been raised about the capacity of netbooks to fulfill the objectives of the project.
International tender
While the President stated that everyone will have a chance to tender for the computers, he said that the magnitude of the project requires the government to go the route of international tendering. “If you’re buying large quantities, like what we’re purchasing, you should go directly to the manufacturers, like we’re going to do now, not to go through the local suppliers. If they want to put in a bid, they can put in a bid but this will be an international tender,” he said. Jagdeo disclosed that some persons did propose building the computers at a cheaper price but he said that the government could not take taxpayer’s money and use it in this manner. According to him, if something goes wrong the builders would not be bound to fix it but with the international companies they will fix anything that goes wrong.
The tender document is scheduled to be launched on February 22 and should be open for 30 days. Afterwards, the tenders will be assessed and an award made. The computers are scheduled to arrive by May 12, 2011, under the proposed schedule.
Jagdeo also signaled the government’s intention to tap into a US$8M ($1.6 B) grant from China which has been “sitting there for a while.” He said that the government asked the Chinese government to supply computers for the programme. “We may have to, because it is a Chinese grant, we would have to use Chinese companies supplying the computers. There are two major suppliers Haier and Lenovo,” he said. He stressed that whatever computers are acquired would have to meet the specifications that have been set out for the computers. Jagdeo said that with the $1.8B and in addition to the Chinese money, possibly 50,000 more computers could be acquired for the OLPF initiative before year end.
Asked what may have prompted Huawei to donate the computers for the launching of the programme, Jagdeo’s said: “We basically have been asking around for free computers.” He pointed to the launch of the project, where he had appealed to members of the donor community to supply computers to the project if possible.
The target group will be the least fortunate in Guyana, Jagdeo said. “So probably we’ll have to have an income test for those who are going to get the computers or they may have to fall into certain groups like disadvantaged people or single parents,” he noted.
Responding to those who have called for computers to be placed instead in police stations and hospitals, Jagdeo said that while this will eventually happen, placing computers in homes could have a transformative impact. “Wouldn’t it make a big difference if you have it in a home where 24 hours a day people from that poor home could learn and have access to the web? Wouldn’t it make a big difference to those kids?” he said.
Jagdeo said that to safeguard against theft, an effort is being made to acquire software that can shut down computers if they are reported stolen. Regarding the after-sales services, he said that there will have to be a partnership with the supplier to ensure their availability here in Guyana. He said that a mechanism needed to be worked out to ensure that services are provided in case instruments needed to be fixed and he mentioned the possibility of using local agents.
Shortage of information
Meanwhile, Jagdeo admitted that there had been a shortage of information regarding the project in his absence. “I agree that the information, when I looked at what came out of the government, was not adequate. They should have done a better job at it. And that mistake that was made in Parliament should have never have been made,” he said.
Minister within the Ministry of Finance Jennifer Webster had initially told the House that the company was purchasing one laptop computer for $295,000. She also said the $1.8 billion budgeted will meet the cost of the 27,000 Lenovo laptops to be procured this year. Webster returned to the House the following day to say that she had made a mistake as the price per laptop was US$295.
However, PNCR-1G MP Deborah Backer has expressed concern that on one hand the minister had cited a cost and a brand for the project but then said that there competitive bidding for the project. She said this was an estimated cost but did not explain how she had determined the brand of computers
Laptops versus netbooks:
While a laptop is essentially a portable PC, the same cannot be said of a netbook. While netbooks provide all the basic functionality of laptops, they do not support some other important features and have limited use because of restricted battery size, processing power and storage space. Netbooks, while cheaper, are not as powerful as laptops and cannot support bigger and complex programmes. They also have no option for using CDs or DVDs since they are not provided with any optical disc drive. The connectivity of netbooks is said to be comparable with that of laptops and internet downloads can also be done at a faster speed.
Specifications of the netbooks being procured:
The systems must meet or exceed the following specifications:
System Colour – Black
System Processor – 1.66 GHz, 667 MHz, FSB
Memory – 1.0 GB DDR3
(ISO-DIMM)
Hard Drive – 160 GB 5400 RPM
SATA 1.5 Gb/s
Display – 10.1 WSVGA 1024*600
TFT Colour LED
Blacklight
Camera – Built-in-above screen 0.3 Megapixel
1/0 Ports – 3VSb 2.0, IVGA DB-15, RJ-45, 2-PCI Express Mini Card Slots, Stereo & Microphone jacks
Video adapter – Integrated Video
Operating System – Genuine Windows 7 English
