Huawei Ghana Ltd and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Ghana have presented assorted IT equipment to the Education Ministry towards the Technology Enabled School System for all (TeOSS) in Ghana at a special ceremony in Accra.
The donated items are for equipping 10 public Basic Schools with the relevant ICT equipment to enhance the capacity of teachers and learners in digital skills and ultimately improve the learning outcomes.
The items include a multimedia interactive smart board, 28 tablets, 28 tablet screens protectors/covers, a charging trolley, a smart UPS, data for six (6) months a router, a Wi-fi repeater, an iBox, 2 extension cables per school whereas the Akropong School for the blind will receive 40 headphones sets and JAWS software.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony in Accra, the Education Minister, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, was full of praise to Huawei Ghana and UNESCO for the support which would go a long way to enhance effective teaching and learning in the selected schools. He was particularly happy that e-learning was being extended to some Public Basic schools in the remote part of the country.
Dr Adutwum said, “We are gradually making our high schools IT learning hub, which is already digitalized and extending this to the JHS. Everything is being digitalized in Ghana and I thank President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his Vice, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for the digitalisation agenda that has reached our education institutions”.
The Education Minister was also happy with the selection of the schools as it was helping in bridging the digital divide, as some of the chosen communities did not initially have access to the internet but would be assisted through this project to get it.
Deepen Collaboration
Dr Adutwum stated, “We are grateful for the improvement you are bringing into the Ghanaian technological space and now to our education space. I pledge to work with you and UNSECO for your regular support to the Ministry.
“We are transforming the nation’s education space and I am appealing to Huawei to help build the first Virtual High School in Ghana”. He said.
The Education Minister indicated that the equipment will help students, especially from remote communities to learn or study online instead of going into the brick-and-mortar high schools so they could also get high-quality education irrespective of their location.
The UNESCO Country Director, Mr Edward Moukala N’Gouemo, was happy with the state of education development in the country and pledged to do more towards enhancing education development in the country.
He explained that the donation which was gift from Huawei was to complement the government’s effort to provide the right resources towards effective teaching and learning in schools.
The Country Director mentioned that after successful piloting in the selected 10 regions, the project would be scaled up to other regions in the country.
The beneficiaries are the Eastern, Greater Accra, Ashanti, Bono, Upper East and Upper West, Savanna, Volta, Central and Western regions.
Background
The TeOSS is to create a resilient and inclusive education system using technology. The overall goal of the project is to enhance learning outcomes and promote the acquisition of 21st-century skills in basic schools through the use of ICT by educators and students
Each pilot school will be provided with the necessary ICT equipment as a step towards empowering educators and learners to thrive in a digital world.
By Felix Baidoo
