The Education Department in Niue says the One Lap Top Per Child programme has been phased out, three years after 500 computers were donated to all school children on the island.
The acting director of Education says the laptops were given to primary and secondary pupils as well as teachers at the beginning of 2009.
Lisimoni Togahai says the programme's first two years went very well, with children's computer literacy and understanding of issues such as climate change improving.
She says unfortunately the scheme is expensive to run and the Education Department hasn't got the budget to pay technicians to service the laptops.
"When the pilot ended and the school could not afford to pay for the high cost of maintaining the V-SAT that's connected to the satellite for the internet access. So it's just phased out."
Lisimoni Togahai says because the computers were given to the students to own, the school does not have the right to demand the pupils return them.
She about 250 of the computers remain in the Niue school system.
