Talk is definitely not CHEAP in Rwanda!

If you are buying MTN scratcher minute cards (and if you’re on a Mission Trip you definitely are) to add time to your phones, scratch off the coating in front of the selling agent and then add your new access code to your phone BEFORE the seller takes off. Unfortunately, I have been sold bad cards a few times and of course those were the cards that were the expensive 5,000 Rwandan franc cards, which is about $9 USA dollars.

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Project Opportunity

MTN Offers Village Phones ( http://www.villagephone.rw/ ) …

About Village Phone

Extending Telecommunications Access To Rural Villages Across Rwanda

In partnership with Rwanda’s leading microfinance institutions, Village Phone Rwanda creates opportunities for poor rural individuals to become “Village Phone Operators” or Tel’imbere operators. These Tel’imbere businesses (contraption of development through telecommunication) can be established in areas where electricity is unavailable and in areas where the MTN network can only be accessed with a booster antenna.

Introducing Village Phone Rwanda

Village Phone Rwanda extends telecommunications access to rural villages across Rwanda. In partnership with Rwanda’s leading microfinance institutions, Village Phone creates opportunities for poor rural individuals to become “Village Phone Operators”. These Village Phone businesses can be established in areas where electricity is unavailable and in areas where the MTN network can only be accessed with a booster antenna. 

Affordable Communications for Rural Rwanda

Village Phone Rwanda provides special airtime rates to the Village Phone Operators to enable them to provide affordable telecommunications services to people in their village. Upcountry, people are now able to make a call without traveling many kilometers to the nearest town. They can simply go to their community Village Phone Operator who serves and supports the community by making affordable communications services available.

http://www.grameenfoundation.org/what_we_do/technology_programs/village_phone_direct/faq_village_phone_direct/

The above link is the foundation that grants the Village Phone. This is a great research project and an opportunity to get mobile phones into some of the more rural areas we visit.

Rwanda Betty

One Laptop Per Child

Project Opportunity 

See Romain Murenzi, Minister of Science and Technology of Rwanda talk about the benefits of Nicholas Negroponte’s organization, OLPC Initiative.

Contact Information: 

 

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

Prof. Romain Murenzi
MINISTERContact Details:Tel: (+250) 83051Fax: (+250) 82162

E-mail: rmurenzi@avu.org

Web site: www.mineduc.gov.rw

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Nicholas Negroponte

One Laptop per Child
P.O. Box 425087
Cambridge, MA 02142
U.S.A.tel: 617-452-5663

http://www.laptop.org/en/vision/index.shtml

Sewing Machine Projects: A Hand-Up Project

This is what Pastor Samuel wrote regarding the three sewing machines I was privileged to facilitate the purchase of. Thank you … all of you … that donated money toward this project. Here’s the progress being made by “The Glory of Christ Church.” Team 7535 … thank you for your contributions. Donors … thank you so much.

Hi Betty, Praise the Lord, thank you so much for your e-mail.

The sewing Machine now is doing well, we have bought material for sewing, repair the room where you kept the machine, buy 6 chairs and 3 tables with all material. Now we have two people doing the sewing, we agreed with them to be payed 40% of the entry and 60% will be for sewing Ministry, through that will have all expensive and John Paul is in charge for the sewing Ministry. In two months we got 115$ for interest after all expensive, which is very Good for the start.

Give our thanks for the team who did that, be blessed. About Betty’s Guest House, on Wednesday we are going to finalize the price of buying the plot with the owner, which means we are going to buy now, as you know it is our first priority for Glory of Christ church, we are pray God to open doors in order to reach that purpose and we believe God will make the way, pray and believe with us.I will inform you after, we agreed with the owner for the last price.On attachment you will see the pictures of the sewing Ministry, also some of the photo of my family.Greet all , we Love you and pray for all of you.

Working with leather.

Today … I cried

It’s Monday. I get up singing the song “It never rains in sunny California.” It’s raining. I thank God for the new day and the rain. Dress … make lunch … go to work … turn on computer … open email. It’s an email from our Pastor Samuel in Rwanda. Excitedly, I click on the entry. What an awesome praise report. Read the next entry above.