African graduates require ICT education to compete globally – AfDB

Use of ICT as an education tool for equipping African students with skills they need to be competitive in the global market is the focus of a gathering of education experts meeting in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, organised by African Development Bank (AfDB).

Speaking at the second African Ministerial Forum on ICT Integration in Education and Training event, convened by the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), John Galvin, vice president/general manager of Intel Education at Intel, said “using ICT for learning gives children hands-on experience that develops their critical thinking, increasing their problem-solving capacity, while, at the same time allowing them to be innovative.”

According to Intel, eight out of 10 jobs require technical skills or ICT training. “All these demand a different way of education. Instead of us teaching students theoretically, let us use ICT to give them the skills sets that will empower them to confront the job market,” Galvin said.

The forum seeks to deliberate on practical ways through which ICT can effectively be integrated into Africa’s education system to produce graduates that are ready for the job market.

“Through the newly launched programme, we want to assist member countries to advance ICT. We would like to connect ICT to education to ensure our students are marketable when they graduate,” Etienne Porgo, division manager, Education, Science and Technology, within the bank’s human development department, said.

Launched at the AfDB Annual Meetings in Zambia in May 2016, Jobs for Youth in Africa (JfYA) strategy, which aims at targeting ICT for education to groom young people for employment, will see the bank invest $5 billion over the next 10 years and generate 25 million new jobs.

The forum expects that these investments are expected to create opportunities for 50 million young people through skills development, and job creation in agriculture, industry and ICT.

The forum heard that policies, which ensure learning using ICT, are critical, and they must hinge on ICT for development. These policies will ensure delivery of quality education. “For you to have quality, you need quality teachers trained on how to utilize ICT for education,” said David Atchoarena, UNESCO’s Director of Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems.

Similarly, Oley Dibba-Wadda, ADEA’s Executive Secretary, underlined that ICT integration in the education sector was both a technical and policy issue that would guarantee continuous training to both the teacher and the learner.

Delegates from Côte d’Ivoire highlighted how the establishment of the ICT in education policy has led to an increase in financial resource allocation to the education sector, especially e-education.

 “Teachers are being trained to align them with ICT systems. We also have partnerships with ICT firms, to offer trainings,” said Bruno Nabagné Koné, the minister of Digital Economy and Government spokesman.

The Abidjan Forum emphasised the need for partnerships and resources to promote education institutions in order to advance technology and innovation.