Software Donations Expand Tech Training for Russian Community Leaders
Nonprofit Partnership Obninsk City Information Center (NP OCIC) develops the information potential of communities in Russia's Kaluga region. Established by a group of information technology specialists in 2000, OCIC helps community leaders and citizens use modern information technology. It also creates and supports information resources for local self-government bodies. As part of its information awareness campaign, NP OCIC provides information technology training for the unemployed and the interested public in Obninsk, Maloyaroslavets, Balabanovo, and Zhukov. Its classes have helped to improve the qualifications of more than 2,000 people, reduced unemployment levels in Obninsk's surrounding towns and villages, and improved the standard of living of the employed. Through InfoDonor, the Russian software donation program of the TechSoup Global Network, the organization received donations of Microsoft software packages and licensing. The donations helped the organization add more instructors and provide training that students and the unemployed can afford.
