OLPC halves staff, cuts salaries

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One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) is to cut its staff by 50 per cent, the charity’s head has announced, blaming the tough economic times.

The remaining 32 staff at the cheap laptop developers will also face salary reductions.

On the charity’s wiki, founder Nicholas Negroponte said: “Like many other nonprofits that are facing tough economic times, One Laptop per Child must downsize in order to keep costs in line with fewer financial resources.”

“While we are saddened by this development, we remain firmly committed to our mission of getting laptops to children in developing countries,” Negroponte added.

Indeed, the group – which aims to get ruggedised, low-cost laptops to children in developing countries – also laid out new plans for the future, including developing the next generation of its XO laptop, creating a no-cost connectivity program, and digitising a million books.

OLPC also promised to make its laptop available for free to the least developed countries in the world. “The future brings with it some uncertainty, some difficulty, but also the excitement that comes with the re-dedication to a cause, and a new path that will allow us to realize the moral purpose of OLPC,” Negroponte added.

To help achieve its ambitious mission to distribute laptops to developing countries, OLPC recently launched an advertising campaign featuring former Beatle John Lennon, who died some 28 years ago.

The economic downturn is likely to hit charities just as hard – if not harder – than companies. Click here for 15 tech-based non-profits that need your help.

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