Our Partners
Close The Gap
Close the Gap is an international non-profit organisation that aims to bridge the digital divide by offering high-quality, pre-owned computers donated by European companies to educational, medical and social projects in developing and emerging countries.
Access to information and communication technology (ICT) is essential in the developing world because it is key to improving a country’s educational and economic prospects. However, the cost of new equipment, limited infrastructure and the lack of IT knowledge and proficiency mean that many people still have no access to IT. Today, information is seen as one of the major drivers of economic and social development and ICT makes access to information available on an unprecedented scale.
The digital divide is not only a divide between people who have access to ICT and people who don’t. It’s also a divide between people who have knowledge of ICT and those who don’t, between people who realise the opportunities presented by ICT and those who don’t. It consists of an infrastructure gap, a knowledge gap and a psychological gap.
Close the Gap collects decommissioned computers from companies and arranges for other organisations to clean the hard disks and then check and configure the hardware according to the requirements of its end-users. The computers are then shipped to the destination country by sea or air transport. Since 2003, Close the Gap has already received more than 250,000 computers from companies all over Europe.
Close the Gap not only provides computers to developing countries, but it also builds partnerships with organisations worldwide in order to deliver comprehensive software and hardware solutions to its recipients.
Today, Close the Gap has supported more than 2,500 projects all over the world. However diverse the projects, they all have one common denominator: a focus on advancing both the individual and the community within a spirit of socio-economical education. By following this principle, Close the Gap is participating in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.
3AMB
3AMB is a Fund, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation focusing on education and training of young adults, outside Western Europe that are experiencing difficulties.
Thanks to the support of the King Baudouin Foundation 3AMB and Fund Isaan were brought in contact with each other.
3AMB provides Fund Isaan with the financial means to pay scholarships to underprivileged but bright students in Isaan. In March 2015 the founders of 3AMB visited the schools and students Fund Isaan works with. In September 2015 our collaboration has allowed us so far to add 60 students to the program. Today 70 students are able to continue their education thanks to the support of 3AMB.
Fund Isaan is delighted about this partnership allowing us to expand our activities and helping even more children.
VZW Thaise Vrienden Wevelgem
VZW Thaise vrienden Wevelgem is a non-profit organization set up by a group of goodhearted friends in Belgium. Through frequent travel to Thailand they were faced with the often difficult living conditions of Thai people in the North and South of the country. Together they decided to do something about it. Over the years they supported different projects in Thailand. Amongst others they builded an internat, they donated a playground, bought a tractor for a cooperative and a school bus for a school. During the flooding in Bangkok they financially supported several families.
Early 2020 they got in touch with Fund Isaan through Jocelyn Timmermans. After some mails back and forward VZW Thaise Vrienden Wevelgem decided to make available the financial means to install five computer classes in rural schools in the province of Surin.
This gift was extremely welcome as several of the fund raising events annually organized by our sponsors could not take place following the corona-crisis.
Fund Isaan is extremely grateful for this new partnership, which we hope will continue for many years to come.