Sainsbury's Donates 5,000 PCs and Monitors to IT Charity for Use in Developing Countries

Supermarket giant Sainsbury's has provided 4,390 PCs and 4,572 monitors to IT charity Computer Aid International, boosting access to IT in developing countries. The equipment, donated between July and October 2009, is being professionally refurbished at Computer Aid's London headquarters for use in agriculture, healthcare and education projects across Africa and South America. 256 PCs and monitors have already been sent to the APPBG, an Association of Small Banana Producers in Ecuador, to improve the day to day running of the fair trade banana enterprise and its trade unions.

Sainsbury's is using Computer Aid's PC decommissioning service, which guarantees complete data destruction using the Blancco data wiping software and compliance with all UK legislation, including the WEEE directive, Data Protection Act and Environment Act. All viable PCs and laptops are professionally refurbished to extend their life by another three to four years, with any unusable equipment fully recycled in an environmentally friendly way.

Computer Aid's asset tracking service is also enabling Sainsbury's to identify the exact projects that are benefiting from its out-of-use PCs and monitors. Many will be distributed through the charity's not-for-profit partner organisations, such as the British Council, Eritrea , which equips public libraries with PCs, and the African Medical and Research Foundation, Kenya, which provides PCs to rural hospitals to enable remote diagnosis by specialist doctors in city locations.

Rob Fraser, Sainsbury's IT Director said, "Computer Aid made donating these PCs extremely straightforward by assuming full legal liability for the equipment we sent and providing documentation to prove our compliance with electrical waste and payment card industry regulations. I'm proud to say that our IT division already supports many local charities but with this donation to Computer Aid we are also able to make a difference to those in need even further afield which is a win-win solution for all concerned."

Jack Cunningham, Sainsbury's Environmental Affairs Manager, commented: "Being a responsible retailer is core to what we do. The success of relationships with organisations such as Computer Aid can be significant, in this case both social and environmental. As the UK's largest retailer of Fair Trade products it's exciting to be able to donate old IT equipment via Computer Aid to Fair Trade producers and the additional benefit is that we are continuing to divert a valuable resource from landfill. Both successes should be celebrated!"

Tony Roberts, Founder and Chief Executive of Computer Aid, added: "Sainsbury's substantial donation will make a significant contribution in enabling disadvantaged communities to actively participate in the global digital economy. Every PC refurbished by Computer Aid will go on to provide at least 6,000 hours of computer access, which is enough time to train 60 children to a vocational level of IT literacy."

"Corporate partners like Sainsbury's have played a vital role in enabling Computer Aid to provide over 150,000 PCs and laptops to developing countries, ensuring the legal disposal of their IT equipment while boosting their own CSR programmes and environmental credentials. We urge other organisations to follow their lead and consider the many ways they and their staff can support our projects, from fundraising ventures to sponsoring a school IT lab," Roberts added.

Computer Aid International has professionally refurbished over 150,000 PCs for use in schools, hospitals and community projects in more than 100 countries. The charity is an Authorised Approved Treatment Facility, licensed by the Environment Agency to handle old electronic equipment. One hundred per cent data destruction is guaranteed to all donors, free of charge, using the world's leading data destruction software from Blancco, which is approved by both the US military and UK secret service.

To find out more about donating to Computer Aid International, contact the charity directly on 020 8361 5540, email enquiries@computeraid.org , or visit: www.computeraid.org.