Absa to finance student PCs

By Staff Writer for Intel
Johannesburg, 26 Aug 2008

Retail bank Absa has teamed with Intel and Microsoft to offer students PC and notebook finance packages.

The three, in a joint statement, added that Dell, HP and Mustek have been identified as the hardware suppliers for this programme.

They say the financing and repayment options "will be exactly like that of a generic student loan".

Students will be able to finance the computer equipment as part of an existing student loan, or by taking out a new student loan solely to purchase a laptop.

Absa head of student banking solutions Shannon Timothy says local research has shown the penetration of PCs into higher education in SA is still below 4%, due mainly to high interest rates that impact the affordability of a PC.

As a result, many students lack the requisite IT skills to empower them while at university, or effectively enter the job market.

"Owning a laptop gives students the opportunity to exponentially increase their learning potential - it gives them mobility and access to global knowledge, and literally opens up the world for them," says Timothy.