Dimension Data lights the way with solar backpacks for schoolchildren

NOTE: This blog was originally published on the Dimension Data website. Dimension Data rebranded as NTT DATA in 2024.

In 2018, the Department of Basic Education reported that 239 schools in South Africa had no access to electricity. Although that’s only a fraction of the more than 23,000 public schools in the country, we’re still talking about thousands of learners being affected. And in areas where homes also lack electricity, that’s a double blow to young people who are trying to get a head start in life.

Five years later and the country’s regular rolling blackouts, known locally as load-shedding, are affecting learners everywhere. They have to do their homework or study for exams in poor light, and can’t charge their devices to access information online.

At Dimension Data, we believe that innovation in both education and technology is crucial to building a connected future that benefits people, communities and the planet. As part of our corporate social responsibility, we work with our partners to create digital solutions that tackle social and environmental issues across sectors.

To address the impact of the power problem on young learners, we’ve teamed up with Ked-Liphi, a small, Botswana-based technology enterprise specializing in innovative electronic engineering that was founded by Kedumetse Liphi, an award-winning young entrepreneur.

A backpack that has it all

One of their locally manufactured products is the Chedza solar backpack, made out of durable and waterproof canvas and incorporating a small solar panel – the perfect technology for a country that gets an average of 2,500 hours of sunshine every year.

Children in rural communities often walk long distances to and from school every day, which means there is ample time for the solar panel to charge.

The sun’s power flows into a charging mechanism and power bank that can charge small devices such as smartphones or tablets. The backpack also has a light-emitting diode (LED) lamp so learners can keep working.

A great start through fundraising

To kick off our efforts to distribute the backpack, we asked Dimension Data employees to take part in a Mandela Day fundraiser in July this year, where all the proceeds went to the backpack project. We also promoted our idea at SAPHILA, the biennial conference for African SAP users, to offer our clients an opportunity to help.

Through these efforts, we raised a total of ZAR 100,000 (USD 5,200). The backpacks will go to schools we have identified in rural Gqeberha and KwaZulu-Natal.

Even more exciting, we have been recognized in the category of Corporate Social Responsibility in the SAP Partner Awards for Q3 2023 for the impact we're making in these communities amid the ongoing energy crisis in South Africa.

As a strategic partner to SAP in Africa, and as a Global Partner via NTT, we are extremely proud to be associated with SAP and their Corporate Social Responsibility program.

Meanwhile, Ked-Liphi, the maker of the backpacks, are also expanding their operations to South Africa, which will benefit local communities, and Kedumetse – the founder and CEO – will represent Botswana at the 2023 African Youth Climate Assembly, which unites young change-makers from more than 60 countries in Africa and beyond.

International Energy Agency data shows that 600 million people in Africa lack access to electricity – most of them in sub-Saharan Africa. Initiatives and partnerships like these have the potential to change many more lives beyond the countries where they originate.

Together, we’re driving change and creating opportunities for a brighter tomorrow.