The Fundacion Proacceso uses the educational benefits of technology to catalyze the social and economic development of marginalized communities in Mexico. It envisions a world where everyone is digitally included and empowered by access to education.
More than 69% of the population, or 78 million Mexicans, do not have access to the Internet. Additionally, the public education system in Mexico is ranked among the worst in the OECD countries; with 75% of the students who enroll in primary school not completing high school, the majority of the country's population is not equipped with the basic skills needed to break out of poverty.
The Fundacion Proacceso's main project is the Red de Innovacion y Aprendizaje (RIA), or Learning and Innovation Network, a group of centers that connect underserved populations to quality education and technology. The RIA aims to bridge Mexico's digital divide and provide its users with the tools they need to participate in their communities and the world at large.
In under three years more than 240,000 users have registered at the RIA centers and more than 60,000 students have graduated from its courses. We have helped students improve their study techniques, the unemployed find jobs on the Internet and people of all ages learn basic computer skills and how to speak English. With 70 centers in the State of Mexico, the RIA expects to reach approximately 350,000 users by the end of 2012.
