{"id":12639,"date":"2025-10-20T10:23:54","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T08:23:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/?p=12639"},"modified":"2025-10-20T10:31:15","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T08:31:15","slug":"vote-to-connect-communities-wpdi-and-ses-are-bridging-the-digital-divide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/fr\/news\/vote-to-connect-communities-wpdi-and-ses-are-bridging-the-digital-divide\/","title":{"rendered":"Vote to Connect Communities: WPDI and SES Are Bridging the Digital Divide"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12640 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"719\" height=\"479\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1-250x167.jpg 250w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1-750x500.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/ICT-training-Uganda-Acholi-2048x1365-1-120x80.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 719px) 100vw, 719px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>October 20, 2025 \u2014<\/strong> More than one-third of the world\u2019s population still lacks access to the Internet. For millions of young people, this digital divide limits not only their ability to learn and communicate but also to participate in the modern economy and global dialogue. This inequality is especially stark in regions affected by conflict, displacement, or chronic underinvestment in infrastructure. Yet it is precisely in these communities where digital access can be most transformative: connecting people to education, opportunity, and hope.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>A Partnership Built on Connectivity and Opportunity<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To help bridge this gap, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/news\/intelsat-partners-with-wpdi-to-expand-access-to-education-in-east-africa\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the Whitaker Peace &amp; Development Initiative (WPDI) partnered with SES (formerly Intelsat)<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to provide satellite-powered internet connectivity to all of WPDI\u2019s Community Learning Centers (CLCs) in South Sudan and, soon, Uganda. These centers serve as local hubs for peacebuilding, digital education, and entrepreneurship, equipping young people and community members with the skills and tools to build sustainable livelihoods and peaceful societies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With reliable, high-speed internet, learners can now access online courses, connect with trainers in real time, and explore digital entrepreneurship opportunities \u2014 even in some of the most remote areas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">WPDI\u2019s founder and CEO, Forest Whitaker, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/kevinholdenplatt\/2025\/07\/21\/intelsat-joins-film-star-forest-whitaker-in-utopian-peacemaking-pilot\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">explained in a recent Forbes feature<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">,<em> \u00ab\u00a0Connectivity is not only about access to technology. It is about access to possibility.\u201d<\/em> Through this partnership, WPDI and SES are turning that possibility into reality, ensuring that no one is left behind in the digital age.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can read more about this collaboration in:<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/nonprofitquarterly.org\/how-an-international-ngo-plans-to-fight-the-digital-divide-with-a-satellite-company\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nonprofit Quarterly: How an International NGO Plans to Fight the Digital Divide with a Satellite Company<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/kevinholdenplatt\/2025\/07\/21\/intelsat-joins-film-star-forest-whitaker-in-utopian-peacemaking-pilot\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Forbes: Intelsat Joins Film Star Forest Whitaker in Utopian Peacemaking Pilot<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Recognized for Impact: AfricaTech Festival Awards 2025<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In recognition of this work, WPDI and SES have been shortlisted for the \u201cChanging Lives\u201d Award at the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/africatechfestival.com\/changing-lives-award-africa-tech-festival-awards\/#:~:text=The%20Changing%20Lives%20Award%20is%20dedicated%20to%20recognizing%20and%20honouring,lives%20across%20the%20African%20continent.\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">AfricaTech Festival Awards 2025<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, honoring initiatives that use technology to create lasting social impact. The award ceremony will be celebrated on November 12th in Cape Town, South Africa.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>How You Can Help<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can help support WPDI\u2019s mission to expand access to digital education and connectivity by voting for our partnership with SES in the \u201cChanging Lives\u201d category. <\/span><b>Voting is open until Friday, October 24<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and every vote helps amplify the voices of the communities we serve!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Vote here<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/ow.ly\/gY7A50X9gYL\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">https:\/\/ow.ly\/gY7A50X9gYL<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Together, we can continue to show that when technology and purpose unite, peace becomes not just an aspiration, but an achievable reality.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"422\" height=\"169\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12642 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/Screenshot-2025-10-20-102202.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/Screenshot-2025-10-20-102202.png 422w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/Screenshot-2025-10-20-102202-250x100.png 250w, https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/app\/uploads\/Screenshot-2025-10-20-102202-120x48.png 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 422px) 100vw, 422px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"October 20, 2025 \u2014 More than one-third of the world\u2019s population still lacks access to the Internet. For millions of young people, this digital divide limits not only their ability to learn and communicate but also to participate in the modern economy and global dialogue. This inequality is especially stark in regions affected by conflict,&#8230; <a class=\"view-article\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/fr\/news\/vote-to-connect-communities-wpdi-and-ses-are-bridging-the-digital-divide\/\">View Article<\/a>","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":12640,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[43,97],"class_list":["post-12639","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-community-learning-centers","tag-ict-training"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Vote to Connect Communities: WPDI and SES Are Bridging the Digital Divide - WPDI<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wpdi.org\/news\/vote-to-connect-communities-wpdi-and-ses-are-bridging-the-digital-divide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Vote to Connect Communities: WPDI and SES Are Bridging the Digital Divide - WPDI\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"October 20, 2025 \u2014 More than one-third of the world\u2019s population still lacks access to the Internet. 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