The
Ministry
of
Communications
and
Digitalisation,
in
collaboration
with
MTN
Ghana,
celebrated
the
National
Girls
in
ICT
Day
in
grand
style,
honouring
a
thousand
beneficiaries
of
the
Girls-in-ICT
training
in
the
Greater
Accra
Region.
The
event,
held
at
the
University
of
Ghana’s
Cedi
Conference
Centre,
brought
together
leading
female
professionals
in
the
ICT
field
to
share
their
experiences
and
inspire
the
girls
to
pursue
careers
in
Information
and
Communication
Technology
(ICT).
The
Minister
for
Communications
and
Digitalisation,
Ursula
Owusu-Ekuful,
highlighted
the
government’s
efforts
to
create
a
sustainable
financial
model
with
enhanced
training
content
to
benefit
more
girls
throughout
the
year,
aligning
with
UN
Sustainable
Development
Goals
4
and
5.
In
a
significant
move,
the
ministry
launched
the
Ghana
Girls
in
ICT
Trust,
to
serve
as
a
continuous
pipeline
of
trained
and
empowered
girls
and
women,
fostering
an
enabling
national
environment
for
young
women
in
ICT
and
STEM.
Addressing
journalists,
the
minister,
Ursula
Owusu-Ekuful
explained
the
importance
of
the
Trust
in
addressing
funding
challenges
associated
with
the
programme.
She
noted
that
the
Trust
will
facilitate
public-private
sector
partnerships,
bringing
more
partners
on
board
to
sustain
the
programme.
“Funding
has
always
been
a
challenge,
but
with
the
Trust
in
place,
we
can
now
engage
potential
donors.
Several
have
shown
interest
but
were
previously
hesitant
due
to
it
being
a
purely
governmental
initiative.
“The
Trust,
as
a
public-private
partnership,
will
welcome
donor
agencies,
individuals,
and
companies
as
Trustees.
This
inclusion
will
allow
them
to
incorporate
funding
for
the
Trust
into
their
annual
budgets,
ensuring
a
sustainable
stream
of
funding
for
the
project,”
said
Hon.
Ursula
Owusu-Ekuful.
Greater
Accra
Regional
Minister,
Daniel
Nii
Kwartei
Titus-Glover,
reiterated
the
government’s
commitment
to
equipping
young
girls
with
essential
ICT
skills
to
excel
in
an
increasingly
technological
world.
On
the
sidelines
of
the
launch,
Adwoa
Wiafe,
Chief
Corporate
Services
and
Sustainability
Officer
of
MTN
disclosed
that
MTN
Ghana
plans
to
engage
with
the
Ministry
to
explore
further
support
for
the
initiative.
“We
understand
that
the
Ministry
is
transitioning
this
into
a
Trust,
and
we
will
discuss
with
the
Ministry
to
understand
their
plans
and
determine
our
future
involvement,”
said
Adwoa
Wiafe.
This
year’s
National
Girls
in
ICT
Day
included
a
five-day
ICT
training
for
both
students
and
teachers.
The
climax
of
the
training
program
saw
the
best
100
students
receiving
a
brand
new
laptop
and
a
laptop
bag.
The
best
three
students
received
a
plaque
and
cash.
MTN
Ghana,
a
partner
of
the
Ministry
since
2021,
has
invested
GH¢15.6
million
in
the
programme,
contributing
to
the
training
of
9,000
girls
and
900
teachers
in
basic
ICT
skills
such
as
coding,
website
design,
game
development,
and
animation.
Regions
covered
so
far
include
North-East,
Western-North,
Ahafo,
Bono-East,
Bono,
Savannah,
Northern,
Eastern,
and
Greater
Accra.