The Minister of Communication and Digitalization, Mrs. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, has revealed that the ministry is in the process of creating a trust fund dedicated for the girls-in-ICT programme.
Revealing this during the climax of the 2023 girl-in-ICT celebration in Koforidua, the Eastern Regional capital, she mentioned that trustees for the fund will be selected from both the public and private sectors.
“It will be managed by competent administrators who will raise funds locally and internationally to continue running this programme and even expand its scope,” Mrs. Owusu-Ekuful said.
Invitation to be anchor
Mrs. Owusu-Ekuful has since sent a formal invitation to the Ministry of Education to be the “anchor partner of the girls-in-ICT trust” as a result of its consistent and demonstrable commitment to the girls-in-ICT programme and “seen as an important contributor to empowering and educating girls throughout Ghana.”
Registering and incorporating the trust, she said, is the first step of a groundbreaking five-year programme aimed at comprehensive training and mentoring opportunities to girls across all the 16 regions of the country.
“The vision is to develop a system that will create a pipeline of trained and empowered young women to help bridge the digital divide,” Mrs. Owusu-Ekuful told the Education Ministry in her invitation letter.
Touting the successes of the programme, Mrs. Owusu-Ekuful said the initiative has been crucial in building the capacity of these young ones in the ICT ecosystem, especially when the world has become a global village.
“Having more girls and women involved in ICT fields, from entry-level positions to leadership roles, can lead to a more balanced and diverse industry. This representation helps challenge stereotypes and encourages greater participation from all genders, hence the Girls-In-ICT Initiative,” she said.
Continuing Mrs. Owusu-Ekuful stated that with Ghana progressively becoming a digital economy, the participation of girls and women in the ICT sector will bring onboard new perspectives and ideas to be considered, and conversations in the ICT sector will be reshaped to include a holistic development of technology.
“It is significant to note that the Girls-in-ICT Initiative seeks to inspire girls and young women to consider pursuing programs in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) by introducing them to career opportunities in the ICT industry and encouraging them to embrace ICT’’.
‘’If we want our young maidens to be innovators and suppliers of answers to our developmental problems for the good of everyone, we need to develop and enhance their digital literacy and skills while they are still young. This is a deliberate policy to bridge the digital gender divide,” she stated.