How It Works
Nine stages, from your first email to the certificate confirming a machine has reached the end of its useful life. Every stage produces a document, and you receive copies of the ones that concern your equipment.
Every stage, what it takes, and what you receive
Offer and qualification
Within 12 hours
We assess every offer against our published intake specification before agreeing to anything. The assessment covers quantity, age and specification, location, your timeline, and whether the machines are locked to a management platform. An offer can be accepted in full, accepted in part, or declined with an explanation and a referral to a certified recycler.
Agreement and transfer of title
Within 5 working days
A Deed of Gift is signed before collection. It transfers legal title to IT for Youth Ghana, records the asset list by serial number, disclaims all warranties, confirms which party is responsible for data removal, confirms the machines have been released from device management and firmware passwords cleared, and states that we may deploy, retain for parts, or responsibly recycle any unit at our discretion. Units we cannot use are not returned.
Collection and chain of custody
By arrangement
Machines are counted against the manifest at your premises, in the presence of your representative, and both parties sign. Units travel sealed and are counted again on arrival at our facility by a second member of staff. Any discrepancy is recorded and reported to you within one working day.
Intake, tagging and grading
Within 2 working days of arrival
Every unit receives a permanent IT for Youth asset tag and a register entry capturing serial number, make, model, processor, memory, storage, screen condition, battery health, charger presence and donor batch. Each unit is then graded. Grade A deploys to an individual. Grade B deploys to shared use in a club or lab. Grade C is retained for parts. Reject goes to certified recycling.
Data sanitisation
Within 10 working days of arrival
Every storage device is sanitised to NIST SP 800-88 Revision 1 on arrival, whether or not it has already been wiped. Method depends on the drive: full overwrite for mechanical drives, the drive’s own secure erase or cryptographic erase command for solid-state drives, and physical destruction for any drive that fails to verify. Drives from units graded for parts or rejection are removed and destroyed rather than wiped. Each unit produces a certificate carrying the serial number, method, date, result and operator.
Refurbishment, imaging and quality assurance
2 to 4 weeks
Physical repair and cleaning, memory or storage upgrades where parts allow, battery replacement where economical, then installation of Windows 11 and the standard IT for Youth software image. Every unit passes a written quality assurance checklist before it leaves the bench: boot time, all ports and keys, camera and microphone, wireless, battery runtime under load, and no diagnostic errors.
Allocation and handover
Next selection cycle
Units are allocated against applications by a selection panel on a published cycle. Not first-come-first-served. The recipient signs a loan-to-own agreement, receives an induction covering care, security, backup and fault reporting, and signs a handover record. Photographs are taken only where separate written consent exists.
In-life tracking and support
12 months
Check-ins at three, six and twelve months confirm the machine is working and in the recipient’s possession. Repairs are handled from the parts pool. Loss or theft is reported and recorded against the asset. On completion of the agreed training track and 300 of peer teaching, title transfers to the recipient.
End of life and recycling
As required
Units leave only through a licensed electronic waste handler, against a weight receipt and a certificate of destruction. Nothing is sold into the informal repair market and nothing is left in general waste. Volumes and certificates are published annually.