Over the last two years 362,000 pupils have been given a brand new laptop to help with their studies. The scheme “Plan Ceibal” (Education Connect) has given many families access to a computer and Internet for the very first time.

Uruguay is part of the One Laptop Per Child scheme, an organisation set up by Internet whiz Nicholas Negroponte. The programme has cost the country £159 per child, which includes maintenance costs, equipment repairs, training for teachers and Internet connection. That figure represents less than 5% of the country’s education budget.

Miguel Brechner, director of the Technological Laboratory of Uruguay and in charge of Plan Ceibal explained that, "This is not simply the handing out of laptops or an education programme. It is a programme which seeks to reduce the gap between the digital world and the world of knowledge,”

Now that all the children have their computers, the authorities say keeping the schools connected is their main priority, particularly in rural areas, where many still do not have Internet access. There are plans to extend the scheme to secondary schools and pre-school children next year. Organisers of the Plan Ceibal have set up a consultancy in order to advise other countries wishing to replicate the Uruguayan experience.

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