GIFEC’s ICT Capacity Building Programme forms part of our core mandate close the Digital Divide. The Programme seeks to promote and expand the use and benefits of ICTs to the public by supporting a range of digital literacy and skills development, education and ICT awareness projects.

The Programme prioritises the effective use of digital technologies to promote the teaching and learning of ICT, with a special focus on Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development, particularly in Underserved and Unserved communities.

The Programme comprises the following:

The Digital Transformation Centers (DTC) Project collaboration with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Cisco and the Norwegian Agency for Development (NORAD), seeks to train at least 17,000 Citizens (Women Entrepreneurs, School Dropouts, Artisans, the Youth, etc.) in 3 years (from 2020 to 2023), to equip them with basic digital skills to enhance their capacity to use technology and improve their lives and businesses.

This Project has a Coding Clubs component that aims to set up 17 Clubs, training at least 1,500 basic school students, most of them girls, in Scratch and Python computer programming, towards enhancing their interest in STEM.

Digital Transformation Centers (DTC) Project in collaboration with the German Development Agency – GIZ aims to equip beneficiaries with employable skills and capacities to start their own businesses. So far, the project has been delivered in the 2022 only, training 2,650 citizens, including 150 Persons With Disability (PWDs).

Coding for Kids (C4K) is a typical GIFEC Project that aims to train as many Basic School children as possible in basic Coding, geared towards increasing their interest in STEM.

Girls in ICT (GIICT) is an ITU annual event designed to build the interest of young girls in ICT. Originally a one-day event, it has since been enhanced by the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, evolving over the years, as follows:

• Rotates from one Region to another.

• Training of selected Teachers from each District in the Region, with the selection done in collaboration with the Ghana Education Service (GES).

• Residential/Non-residential training of selected girls from District in the Region, with the selection done in collaboration with the GES.

• A Mentorship session involving female role models within the ICT ecosystem.

• A Climax spearheaded the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digitalisation.

• A laptop each for the best-performing 100 Girls.

• The establishment of the CyberLab in the school of the top Girl in each District of the Region.

• A laptop each for the top 10 Teachers, and the participating GES Girl-Child coordinators.

ICT Skills for Entrepreneurial and Women Empowerment Program (ISEWE) is a collaboration with UNESCO which seeks to equip women entrepreneurs with ICT skills. The project aims to train 700 women entrepreneurs within a period of 2 years (from 2021 to 2022, albeit slightly delayed and expected to extend into 2023).

ICT Teachers Training is one of GIFEC’s Capacity Building Projects, aimed at equipping ICT teachers with the requisite skills to effectively manage CyberLabs.

Artisanal Training is a GIFEC Capacity Building Project that provides Digital Skills to Artisans such as Hairdressers, Mechanics, Dressmakers, and Beauticians to enable them to expand their businesses and trade.

The table below illustrates the Programmes’ achievements from 2017 to-date:

CHALLENGES AND RESOLUTIONS

One of the major challenges that this Programme faces is insufficient funding, in view of the huge number of citizens who require and can benefit from this Programme.

Accordingly, GIFEC has increased its pursuance of strategic partnerships, which has since 2017 yielded unprecedented results, including the ITU/NORAD/Cisco DTC, the GIZ DTC, and the

UNESCO ISEWE.

The state of the training Facilities where Capacity Building Programmes take place has also been a key problem. In this regard, GIFEC has receive some limited support from some of the partners towards equipping some of the CICs used in delivering the Programme.

THE WAY FORWARD

The ITU DTC, which project is schedule to end in 2023, is expected to train 7,500 more citizens.

Additionally, 3,000 more citizens, 500 teachers and 500 CIC Centre Managers would be trained under GIFEC’s CyberLabs Programmes between 2023 and 2024.

GIFEC expects to facilitate the Girls in ICT Programme, training 800 ICT Teacher and 8,000 Girls.

Forging strategic partnerships with International Development Organisations such as Mastercard Foundation, World Food Programme etc. to augment our financial and technical resources in order to train even more citizens, beginning in 2024.