Communications Minister tours Girls-In-ICT programme training centers in Eastern Region

Minister of Communication and Digitalization, Mrs. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has taken a tour of some training centres of the Girls-In-ICT programme in the Eastern Region.

The tour accorded the minister the opportunity to assess the ongoing training for selected girls in basic schools with ICT skills and to interact with them.

The Ministry and its agencies are undertaking a series of deliberate interventions including the Girls-In-ICT programme, ICT laboratories for Senior High Schools, e-Transform, and Rural Telephony and Digital Inclusion projects, geared towards increasing the interest of girls in ICT.

The Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation in 2017 adopted the initiative, as a platform to equip girls between the ages of 9 and 15 years with knowledge and skills in basic ICT and Coding.

The training therefore formed part of the Girls-In-ICT programme being implemented by the Ministry in collaboration with its agencies to bridge the gender gap in ICT in the country.

In line with this, the Ministry in collaboration with its agencies has trained some 1000 girls in the Eastern Region in basic Information Communication Technology (ICT) skills.

The beneficiaries were taken through a week's training in coding, cyber security, website development among others.

The tour took the minister and her entourage to the Aburi Girls Senior High School, the Presbyterian Secondary School at Mampong, the Eastern Regional Library at Koforidua, and the Ghana Senior High School (GHANASS).

Mrs. Ekuful said about 115,000 teachers had been trained in digital skills, established a knowledge and skills bank as well as ongoing plans for the establishment of a computer laboratory for about 300 schools to be funded by the World Bank.

Setting up the school computer laboratories, the minister explained was to offer an opportunity for the girls to practice and sharpen the skills acquired.

“Building computer laboratories in the schools…will expand the scope of access to ICT by young people,” she explained, adding that her dream was to see all senior high schools in the country fully equipped with a computer laboratory.

The minister was delighted at the performance of the girls after acquiring basic skills in coding after just a week’s instructions, noting that the short time within which they acquired the skills thrilled her.

“The rate at which these girls acquire and utilize these skills is simply amazing,” she said especially as most of them had not even seen a mouse before.

The students thrilled Miss Ekuful as they demonstrated their skills in games, codes, scribes among others which they had developed within a few days.

She also disclosed that measures are also being put in place to ensure that every JHS and SHS student has his or her own laptop.

The minister explained the various opportunities that exist in the ICT space around the globe and urged the students to take advantage of it.

The programme will be climaxed with a mentorship session on Monday whereby women currently working in the ICT field will share their personal and professional experiences with the Girls-in-ICT, to encourage and guide them in their future careers and endeavours.

The programme is implemented with support from Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC) as the technical resource provider, with training by the Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence (KACE).

The programme is also supported by MTN Ghana, the National Communications Authority (NCA), American Towers Company (ATC), the Ministry of Education, GIZ and others.