Computer classes in the Cooperativas
Hoja Blanca, Chanmagua and Cafetales
According to its philosophy, the UGK Foundation supports technical projects that strengthen coffee production on the one hand, and social projects to improve the living conditions of the members of the cooperatives and their families in the communities where they live on the other.
It can be said that facilitating computer courses has both goals in mind. The administration of a cooperative is hardly conceivable at a time when more and more formalities have to be fulfilled. The exchange of data is growing steadily, especially in connection with certifications. Competent data processing is also essential for checking incoming and outgoing coffee quantities, credits in favor of members, current income and expenses of the group, etc. On the other hand, the fact that young people are introduced to the use of computers in schools should be a matter of course today... but in countries like Guatemala it is not, as the reports will show. This project tries to bridge the digital and technological gap among young people in rural areas so that they are more likely to find a job thanks to IT skills.
The Fundación UGK is supporting three projects of this type this year. The Cooperative Chanmagua (Esquipulas) received 20 computers in 2021, but was only able to offer courses in their Academia from this year due to Corona. The project encouraged the neighboring Cooperativa Cafetales to ask Fedecocagua to support a similar project - and they got a positive response. Finally, the Cooperative Hoja Blanca, through sponsorship by PALS and Baker Hansen (Norway), enabled the donation of 25 computers in two secondary schools, the Colegio de Educación Básica Flor del Café and the Instituto Nacional de Educación Básica Campamento Bajo, both in the municipality of Hoja Blanca (Cuilco, Huehuetenango), near the Mexican border.
The UGK Fundación will support the three projects over the next few months. The first contacts with the teachers were promising: we will learn a lot, not only about the courses, but also about the life of the young people in their communities,as well as the situation in the countryside of Guatemala in the year 2022 in general.