The Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has launched the Ghana Girls-in-ICT Trust, a non-profit organisation built to support the digital training initiative for girls, introduced by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in 2012.
The Trust was launched during the Climax ceremony of the Greater Accra Region Girls-in-ICT programme, which was held on Wednesday, 10th July, at the University of Ghana’s Cedi Conference Centre.
During the ceremony, the Minister explained that the Trust was created out of “the desire of the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation to offer more girls a more in-depth training, with age-appropriate content, and a developmental curriculum.”
The Girls-in-ICT (GIICT) programme currently trains 3,000 girls per year, but with more funding, the Trust will help develop training and support systems in Ghana’s 16 regions, and yield at least 9,000 young women trained in ICT yearly. “I hope we’ll be able to even do 10,000 a year, and deliver the training much closer to the people, train the teachers, equip more ICT centres closer to the people in all the various regions,” she said.
The Trust is designed to take the best training and mentoring to girls between 18 and 22 where they live and go to school. Face to face and online training programming will be offered to young women out of Community ICT labs serving their communities. It will be inclusive, training persons with disabilities in the usage of ICT tools.
The Ablekuma West MP affirmed that the Trust, would provide regular reports and audits to ensure complete transparency and accountability, while also valuing the input of all stakeholders.
Speaking on continued mentorship of the girls, Mrs Owusu-Ekuful noted, “We thought of the value that global interaction and best practice competitive content would add to their training. We also thought of the difference a long-term relationship with a role model working in ICT or STEM could make.”
The Trust will be a permanent resource, active even after the Minister’s term is over. It will help promote an enabling environment through cooperation with corporate representatives, community leaders, and education resources to make them more supportive of females in STEM.
Expectations
The Ministry expects the Girls-in-ICT Trust to:
• Annually impact 5,000 primary level girls, between the ages of 8 to 11 years old, expose them to ICT opportunities, and inform them about resources available to them via the internet.
• Train three thousand secondary level girls, between the ages of 13 to 18 years old, annually in coding and cyber security, and engage them with role models in ICT and STEM.
• Train a thousand tertiary level girls, 18 years and above, annually, mentor and place them in STEM internships, applying for graduate level programs in STEM.
• Provide a virtual mentoring platform bringing GIICT graduates and participants together with supportive role models
• Task a cohort of 32 expert ICT trainers to tour the country to recruit, train, and support staff trainers.
• Train 150 staff trainers annually to provide training to girls in schools.
• Establish or upgrade 50 ICT hubs annually to offer female friendly services and guidance.
In her closing remarks, the Minister urged other stakeholders to join partners including USA for Africa, GCB bank, Telecel Foundation, and UNDP, who were present at the launch, in empowering girls to pursue tech careers, bridge the gender gap, bolster Ghana’s digital transformation, and promote inclusivity.
By Derrick Kafui Deti – Digital Economy Magazine
