CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Passionate about bringing equal education opportunities to every student
Advintive’s leader, Karim Lakhani, has long since had a dream to make access to education available to every student no matter where they are located. Born in Uganda, Karim has experienced first-hand the limitations of living in an underserved country. He has made one of his life’s goals to develop and put in place the technology to ensure high quality education is equally available to those in developed and developing countries around the world.
Advintive is committed to the belief that education levels the playing field and is one of the key critical components to emerging countries becoming empowered, self-reliant, and economically viable.
The early days
Advintive’s first contribution to making education available to students in rural and emerging locations was the development of the Axxess server. This intelligent server utilizes a learning management system (LMS) and top quality content. When deployed in rural and underserved communities, the Axxess server brought equal educational opportunities to many students.
Hewlett Packard partnership brings education to Uganda
In addition, Advintive formed a partnership with Hewlett Packard (HP) and together, in 2005, the Advintive/HP duo donated 40 Axxess servers to Uconnect, a Ugandan NGO. To enhance the Axxess server content, Advintive partnered with many educational institutions.
High-speed internet connectivity a must
It quickly became apparent during the installation of the Axxess servers in the Ugandan schools that although they brought educational opportunities to many students, the real limitation was poor, or no, internet connectivity for schools. Advintive recognized that to provide continued and quality distance education services in those schools, the school would need high-speed internet connection.
The solution to bringing high-speed internet to rural and underserved communities
Installation of wire or fiber as a method of delivery is not only expensive, it poses a security risk wherever it is laid. The lowest cost and most economical way of getting connectivity to those schools was then, and still is today, to bring the Internet connectivity wirelessly. The added benefit of the wireless connection is that only end points need to be secured.
Since 2005 Advintive have been working to develop wireless technology that provides low cost, high-speed internet connection over an expansive geographic location; wireless technology that offers near line of sight connectivity and signals operate in areas of dense vegetation.
The road to successful technology deployment
Advintive developed and successfully installed its WiDOX 2 technology solutions in multiple places in Canada and USA seven years ago. Keeping pace with user needs and demands, WiDOX 3.1 provides point-to-multi point connectivity at distances up to 32 kms and at speeds of over 100 megabits per second including multicast capability; this allows Advintive to provide multiple TV channels over the same wireless network similar to that provided by cable companies on their hardwired cable network—a solution ideal for distance learners.
Giving back is still at the core of Advintive
A fundamental drive remains Advintive’s desire to bring equal educational opportunities to students around the world. It continues to donate its services, or partner with like-minded organizations, including and not limited to Uconnect in Uganda, The Aga Khan Foundation in Pakistan, and the Secondary Teacher Education Program (STEP) of the Ismaili Community in Canada.
