The community of Alexandra celebrated a new era of digital access with the launch of a transformative Alexandra Wi-Fi initiative on September 17, spearheaded by Project Isizwe in collaboration with Friends of Alexandra.
The project was officially inaugurated at Joe’s Butchery, marking a significant milestone in accessible education and community engagement in this historically underserved area.
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Project Isizwe CEO Shireen Powell said this initiative transformed education by providing internet access to schools and community centres across Alex, bridging the digital divide and empowering the local population through greater access to information and learning resources.
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“This initiative connects 13 schools and multiple community sites across Alexandra, offering uncapped Wi-Fi access. Educators can employ modern teaching tools by equipping schools with the internet, while learners gain access to a vast world of knowledge,” Powell said.
She said with seven community Wi-Fi spots, Alexandra’s residents also benefitted from enhanced access to information and services.
“This partnership, which runs on fibre provided by Vumatel and internet connectivity from Web Africa, aims to improve education outcomes and drive digital inclusion, especially for learners in historically underserved schools.
“The project has enabled learners and educators alike to interact with innovative digital solutions that are now part of everyday learning experiences.”
Powell added since the project’s inception in January 2024, the initiative has provided Wi-Fi access to more than 5 800 unique users across the community and saved Alex’s residents R2.4 million in mobile data costs.
Realogile High School teacher Pontsho Mahlatsi said this project had changed the culture of learning in the township.
“Learning is no longer the same, it’s more interesting, it’s now engaging and we have noticed that the number of dropouts rates has dropped, school attendance has improved because there are now more interesting ways of interacting in a school environment.
“In a high school, there are a lot of issues of behaviour and challenges regarding academic resistance and people who do not want to change the way they do things.
“But since the inception of internet technology, there is an acceptance in terms of how learning can transition from being about books and papers to a technology that learners can acquire skills and learn more about preparing their future careers,” Mahlatsi said.
Pholosho Primary School teacher Busisiwe Masha said, “As teachers, we benefit a lot from this initiative because I can download my teaching material and teachers will no longer have an excuse not to attend workshops.
“Pholosho had a computer lab but it was not functional as the school did not have an internet connection but with the help of Project Isizwe and Friends of Alexandra, we are now using our lab,” Masha said.
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