An ambitious 5 Year Long Transformational Project Impacting over 2,00,000 Bhutanese.
Timphu, Bhutan and New Delhi, Delhi , India
Chiphen Rigpel – an ambitious human capacity building project, implemented by NIIT, a global leader in skills and talent development and launched by The Royal Government of Bhutan in partnership with Government of India, has successfully completed 5 years after it was initiated on April 30, 2010 on the sidelines of the SAARC summit held in Bhutan. This Govt. of India assisted project was designed to empower the people of Bhutan to transition into a modern Knowledge Society.
NIIT’s impeccable execution of this project over the last 5 years and the successful completion on time and within budget and to the fullest satisfaction of the varied groups of learners was very well appreciated by all the stakeholders present at the Closing Ceremony held at Thimphu, Bhutan.
Speaking on the occasion, the Ambassador of India to Bhutan, Shri Gautam Bambawale, said “The Chiphen Rigpel project has been superbly implemented by NIIT and I would like to say that they have stood up to their reputation and they have lived up to the expectations of the Government of India, and I hope also the expectations of the Royal Government of Bhutan and more importantly the people of Bhutan.”
As part of the Chiphen Rigpel project, NIIT has imparted ICT skills to over 1,25,000 learners and in turn touched the lives of more than 30% of Bhutan’s population. Nowhere in the world has a project had such a widespread impact across a large cross-section of a country’s population. This project was bold in its envisioning and meticulous in its implementation. The project has six components that include – enabling e-governance, empowering teachers and taking ICT to schools, enabling employability, furnishing tertiary institutes with ICT training centres, reaching the unreached all over the nation, and managing e-waste. Chiphen Rigpel reaches out to all sections of Bhutanese society including national leaders, civil servants, local government, teachers, school children, youth, underprivileged children and the monastic body.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Udai Singh, Chief Strategy Officer, NIIT Ltd, said, “We started this prestigious project in 2010 with an aim of enabling Bhutan to transform into a knowledge society. We have used every capability that we have built at NIIT over the last 30 years of operating at a global level in the Educational Technology & Talent Development space in this project. Today after 5 years we can proudly say that we have successfully enabled Bhutan to achieve the objectives of this project & build a strong foundation for its continuing journey towards empowering citizens through ICT and building a knowledge society.”
Chiphen Rigpel project has not only successfully achieved the targets order viagra australian pharmacy that were set, but has also exceeded them in some areas. NIIT imparted computer education & computer aided education services to 168 Government Higher Secondary Schools covering classes 7 to 12. It provided 5,204 certifications to the teachers thus enabling them to use ICT tools in the teaching – learning process to enhance their effectiveness. NIIT provided e-governance literacy to 7396 government Leaders, civil servants, officials, managers and executives. Under the project NIIT set up 16 training facilities to provide high-end IT training, vocational IT training, basic IT literacy and provide 20,541 certifications.
In his keynote address while declaring the successful completion of this project, Lynpo D N Dhungyel, Minister of Information & Communications, Royal Government of Bhutan, said “On behalf of the Royal Government of Bhutan I extend my gratitude to the Government of India for supporting this project and entrusting it to NIIT. The level of commitment shown by NIIT officials and their team, and the enthusiastic participation of all stakeholders shown during the implementation of this project has been evident throughout these 5 years of the project duration. It is a true reflection of the warmth and co-operative spirit between the people of India and Bhutan.”
The project bridged the rural – urban digital divide and provided access to education for remote and rural citizens. NIIT set up 131 Playground Learning Stations (PLS) as part of Community Centres bringing the rural population into the ICT fold. Awareness for e-waste management has been created along with formulation of a strategy for further implementation. Also training programs conducted for the Department of Information Technology & Telecommunications, National Environment Council, Municipalities and Local Government.
About Chiphen Rigpel Project:
“Chiphen Rigpel – Enabling a Society, Empowering a Nation”– is the ambitious Human Capacity Building project introduced by The Royal Government of Bhutan in partnership with Government of India. Chiphen Rigpel has been designed to help Bhutan successfully transition to a modern IT-enabled Knowledge Society. The Government of India supported project was launched by the Prime Ministers of India and Bhutan on April 30, 2010, on the sidelines of the SAARC summit in Bhutan. NIIT is implementing the Project in Bhutan.
A wholly inclusive project that reaches out to all sections of Bhutanese society, Chiphen Rigpel is aimed at providing ICT skills to about a fifth of the population of Bhutan and help them become empowered citizens of an IT-enabled society. The programs offered under the project encompass training of the country’s leadership in preparing for e-governance, bringing ICT and ICT-enabled education to schools, training of teachers, training of youth with employable IT skills and creating Minimally Invasive education opportunities for the unreached Bhutanese population across the length and breadth of the country.
