A total of HUF 50 million from the budget of events cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic has been allocated to the Digital Inclusion Fund established in 2021. The three-year programme was funded by Yettel, and the distribution of the available budget was coordinated by Hungarian Red Cross experts. Applications were open to healthcare, social and child protection/child welfare institutions (hospitals, old people’s homes, temporary family shelters and children’s homes) and to socially vulnerable people (in particular students, elderly people, large families, people in need of care, children of single parents and people supported by social and child protection/welfare institutions). The applications received were evaluated on a monthly basis by an independent panel of Hungarian Red Cross members. In many cases, the opportunity to apply has been a huge help for people who need to connect to the digital world, whether it’s schoolwork, staying in touch, managing their affairs or even finding a job.
The aim is to reduce digital isolation for people in difficulty
Over the past three years, the Hungarian Red Cross has received more than 600 applications, 255 of which have been successful. Laptops were the most popular, with the highest number of applications (148), but many people also received smartphones (50) and tablets (49), as well as feature phones and technical peripherals and accessories. Applications were submitted from all over the country, with 14 counties in the first year and 18-18 counties in the second and third years of the initiative. In 2022, the largest number of applications came from Somogy, Pest and Győr-Moson-Sopron counties, in 2023 from Pest and Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén counties and Budapest, and in 2024 from Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg and Somogy counties.
“By purchasing digital devices and/or software for online communication, learning, information gathering and working, the humanitarian organisation’s main goal is to support socially vulnerable people, in some cases to reduce loneliness, in other cases to reduce inequality. Most of the beneficiaries have never had such devices before, and many of the successful applicants would have had no chance to obtain them without assistance in the medium or longer term, “ said Judit Waller-Fekete, Head of Social Support Services at the Hungarian Red Cross.
Starting school: fewer obstacles, more motivation
The charity organisation knows of many families with children with learning difficulties or even severe disabilities who are unable to support themselves. For them, support for school activities with digital devices is particularly important, as in many cases the family budget does not allow for the purchase of such items.
For example, the programme donated a tablet to Ádám, who has learning difficulties that make it difficult for him to complete his schoolwork. His family hopes that using the device will help him overcome obstacles and increase his motivation. Dani, a boy living in a special care home, cannot write by hand and has difficulty speaking. He was given a laptop and a special mouse to help him learn. This has been a great help for him in completing his studies without obstacles and has also made it easier for him to communicate with his parents at home.
Rita was a very young girl when her family was found by the Hungarian Red Cross. The mother had raised her children in difficult circumstances and had been unable to find a solution to help them overcome their situation. For her children, education was the only way out. Rita is currently studying paramedic science and the computer she won through the programme is essential for her studies. She has never been able to buy a similar device before, not even a second-hand one.
According to the organisers’ concept, any company or individual were able to join the Digital Inclusion Fund as a sponsor. Sponsors contributed more than HUF 300,000 to the total amount available. Programme details: https://voroskereszt.hu/digitalis-felzarkoztatasi-alap/. Yettel has been a telecommunications and strategic partner to the Hungarian Red Cross for more than ten years. In recognition of its ongoing efforts to help people in need, the charity organisation presented the mobile operator with its “Supporter of the Year” award in May 2023.