Transforming lives through dependable, self-powered, and environmentally friendly technologies

Advanced mobile devices dominate the information age we live in today. The so-called developed world receives information faster than ever through the Internet, by way of websites designed for instant real time updates. According to the UK Office of National Statistics, 65% of people have access to the Internet in the UK.  By contrast, imagine a world with limited access to electricity and only 5% of the population with access to the Internet.

This world is sub-Saharan Africa. Only 15 percent of its population has reliable access to modern energy and radio remains unrivalled as the major medium of communication. However, the high cost of disposable batteries and their toxic effect on the environment play into an already grim situation. Many communities have no access to radio whatsoever and this is especially true for orphans and other vulnerable children. Due to conflict and disease, sub-Saharan Africa is home to an estimated 42 million orphans.  The need to provide children with sustainable access to information and education became the inspiration for the Freeplay Foundation's Lifeline radio.

The colourful wind-up and solar-powered Lifeline radio is rugged, easy to use and carry, receives excellent AM/FM/SW and plays for many hours non-stop. The radio design, refined through rigorous field trials, provides sustainable access to information and education. As many as forty children at a time gather around the radio for informal classes.

According to Hollywood actor Tom Hanks, the Foundation's U.S. ambassador, 'The Lifeline radio can change the world - one person, one house, one village at a time.' The Freeplay Foundation has distributed Lifeline radios in more than a dozen African countries, including Rwanda. A tragic legacy of the genocide in Rwanda is that almost one million children were left to fend for themselves. Today, the disaster is compounded by HIV/ AIDS and other diseases which have left even more children parentless. According to Rwandan government statistics, there are an estimated 101,000 households headed by a child in Rwanda alone. These orphans take on countless adult responsibilities, while having to care for younger siblings.

The Lifeline radio brings new hope to child-headed households living in conditions of extreme poverty and isolation. Often these radios provide guidance and education that would normally be given by a parent.  Lifeline radios ensure access to crucial information on everything from healthcare and farming methods to climate change and children?s rights. The Foundation recently distributed over 2,000 radios which reached more than 10,000 orphans and vulnerable children in Rwanda.

One Lifeline radio was given to Miriam, a 19-year-old head of household with four siblings. 'Through the radio, I learnt about services that are delivered by the local government. I was very intimidated and too afraid to ask for services before,' said Miriam. 'The radio gave me the confidence to come forward and ask for things that I am entitled to. Some of my neighbours had taken possession of my land, and I was scared to do anything about it; but from the radio I learnt how to approach the local authorities and reclaim my land.'

The Freeplay Foundation's solar-powered and environmentally friendly Lifeline Radio gives orphans a voice they can trust, reduces their sense of hopelessness and helps them to feel safe at night. To provide a Lifeline radio to a child in Rwanda or for more information, please visit www.freeplayfoundation.org