Accra,— Mrs Cecilia Abena Dapaah, Caretaker Minister, Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), has called on stakeholders to support efforts to provide quality digital education to children.
She said embracing the power of digital solutions would help to transform learning and skills development for an entire generation of children in the country.
In a speech read on her behalf at the 3rd Session of the Children’s Parliament on Friday, Mrs Dapaah said the COVID-19 pandemic had proved the importance of critical digital knowledge and skills as the drivers of education and national development.
The celebration was marked on the theme:”Investing in our future means investing in our children”
The Day, established in 1954, is celebrated annually on November 20 to promote international togetherness, awareness among children worldwide and improve children’s welfare.
Mrs Dapaah said Ghana had been confronted by an urgent need to bridge the digital divide of the rich and poor as well as boys and girls.
She also noted that Africa lagged behind the rest of the world, and that girls trailed boys in both access and use of digital technology.
The Minister said, digital tools were essential in expanding digital skills access to remote areas and most vulnerable, hence, the need to develop strategies to ensure that these skills were provided timeously and equitably and also be matched by the connectivity to use them.
“It is the goal of Government to connect every child and school to the internet, and provide new, digitally driven tools to help them develop skills to realize their potential,” she added.
She said Government had provided free education up to Senior High School, radio and Television broadcast of lessons.
She said they had also reached children in remote areas with learning tools, and provided internet connectivity to a lot of secondary schools, adding that, Government intended to expand the project to basic schools.
Mrs Dapaah urged key partners in the public and private sectors to support the call by Government to provide internet connectivity, devices, affordable data and the engagement of young people.
In a speech read on behalf of Mr Solomon Tesfamariam, Country Director of Plan International Ghana, said the emergence of COVID-19, global warming and climate change had affected and was still affecting children in diverse ways.
He acknowledged the efforts of Government and other agencies towards advancing the wellbeing, rights and equality of children.
Mr Solomon Tesfamariam appealed to the Government to design policies that would discourage exploitation and marginalisation of children especially, the girl-child and promote bottom up policies that would recognise the voices and wishes of children.
Source: Ghana News Agency
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