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Only 13 African countries have a National ICT Policy in place
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21 million female children are out of primary school in SSA
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Mobile phone subscriptions in developing countries reach 200million
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School Net Africa is launched
SchoolNet Africa is one of Africa's first African-led, African-based non-government organisations (NGO) that operates across the continent in its endeavour to improve education access, quality and efficiency through the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in African schools. SchoolNet Africa works mainly with learners, teachers, policymakers and practitioners through country-based schoolnet organisations across Africa. -
UN ICT Task Force is launched
Secretary General Kofi Annan launches the UN ICT Task Force. The purpose of the UN ICT Task force was to build broad-based partnerships, find the means to spread the benefits of the digital revolution in information and communication technologies and avert the prospect of a two-tiered World Information Society. -
UN endorses WSIS
UN General Assembly endorses holding of World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) -
African Virtual University headquarters in Kenya
The African Virtual University (AVU) is a Pan African Intergovernmental Organization whose aim is to significantly increase access to quality higher education and training through the innovative use of information communication technologies. As an African organization, the [AVU ](The African Virtual University (AVU) is a Pan African Intergovernmental Organization whose aim is to significantly increase access to quality higher education and training through the innovative use of information communication technologies. As an African organization, the AVU has a mandate to increase access for tertiary education and trainning using Open Distance and eLearning (ODeL) methodologies. The AVU headquarters is situated in Nairobi, Kenya and a regional office is based in Dakar, Senegal in West Africa.)has a mandate to increase access for tertiary education and trainning using Open Distance and eLearning (ODeL) methodologies. The AVU headquarters is situated in Nairobi, Kenya and a regional office is based in Dakar, -
European Schoolnet is legally established
European Schoolnet (EUN) is a network of 31 Ministries of Education in Europe and beyond. EUN was created more than 10 years ago with the aim to bring about innovation in teaching and learning to its key stakeholders: Ministries of Education, schools, teachers and researchers. European Schoolnet’s activities are divided among three strands of work:
o Policy, research and innovation
o Schools services
o Learning resource exchange and interoperability -
EASSy cable system project initiated by the World Bank
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McKinsey publishes GESCI feasibility study for UN ICT Task Force
This important recommendation is based on a 4-month study carried out by McKinsey on behalf of the UN ICT Task Force. A team of 15 McKinsey consultants conducted interviews with over 300 people, including educators, ICT experts, executives in private sector companies, government officials, donors and foundation leaders. McKinsey has determined educational needs and related ICT potential in five representative developing countries: Bolivia, Ghana, India, Namibia and South Africa. -
NEPAD e-Schools is launched
The NEPAD e-Schools Initiative was publicly launched in Durban at the Africa Summit of the World Economic Forum on June 12, 2003. The NEPAD e-Schools Initiative has been adopted as a priority continental undertaking aimed at ensuring that African youth graduate from African schools with the skills that will enable them to participate effectively in the global information society. The aim of the initiative is to impart ICT skills to young Africans in primary and secondary schools as well as har -
Phase I WSIS Geneva
The objective of the first phase was to develop and foster a clear statement of political will and take concrete steps to establish the foundations for an Information Society for all, reflecting all the different interests at stake. -
The UN ICT Task Force launches GESCI
The UN ICT Task Force launches GESCI at WSIS.
Please see a press release issued by the UN on December 12 2003 -
EASSy Submarine Cable MoU meeting held in Nairobi Kenya
TheEASSy cable is a fully integrated multi-technology network. It is an undersea fiber optic cable that will link the countries of East Africa to the rest of the world. As the term implies, the EASSy project secretariat is the administrative center of the EASSy project and is located at the Telkom Kenya premises in Nairobi, Kenya . -
Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development is formed
The Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development is formed in June 2004. Its
members include Eurostat, ITU, OECD, UNCTAD, UNDESA, the UNESCO Institute for
Statistics (UIS), UN Regional Commissions (UNECLAC, UNESCWA, UNESCAP and UNECA)
and the World Bank. -
GESCI signs MoU with Namibia
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Phase II WSIS Tunis
The objective of the second phase is to put Geneva's Plan of Action into motion as well as to find solutions and reach agreements in the fields of Internet governance, financing mechanisms, and follow-up and implementation of the Geneva and Tunis documents. -
UbuntuNet Alliance launched at WSIS
Established and emerging NRENs (National Research and Education Networks) in Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda and South Africa came together as the Founders of a new grouping: the UbuntuNet Alliance for Research and Education Networking. The vision of delivering very high speed - gigabits (Gb/s) connectivity instead of the current kilobits (kb/s) between African Universities and Research Institutions is driving the Alliance forward at a rapid pace. -
GESCI signs MoU with Bolivia
GSCI signs its first Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with the Ministry of Education and Culture (MoEC) in Bolivia in January 2006.
The Programme is targeted specifically at upper level primary and secondary rural schools and teachers and students within rural communities. -
GESCI signs MoU with Ghana
GESCI places a Country Programme Facilitator in the Ministry of Education and firmly establishes its operations in the country. The Ghanaian e-Schools and Communities Initiative, is serving as the framework in which all ICT in Education initiatives in Ghana will be planned. -
GAID is approved
The Global Alliance for Information and Communication Technologies and Development (GAID), an initiative approved by the United Nations Secretary-General in 2006 is launched after comprehensive worldwide consultations with governments, the private sector, civil society, the technical and Internet communities and academia. -
A 2006 survey on the state of ICT infrastructure in African universities sums up the situation regardingaccess to ICT infrastructure as “too little, too expensive, and poorly managed.”
-
First e-Learning Africa Conference held in Addis Ababa
832 participants from 80 countries gather at the first „eLearning Africa“ conference from May 24 – 26 in the United Nations Conference Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, making it the largest event on educational technologies and development ever taking
place on the continent. -
Namibia launches Tech/Na! with GESCI's support
Tech/Na! is Namibia's ICT4E Implementation Plan, detailing the comprehensive strategy for the integration of ICTs across the education sector. -
36 African countries have a national ICT policy in place
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MPESA launches in Kenya
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GESCI signs MoU with Rwanda
GeSCI is supporting Rwanda as it focuses its efforts on ICTs for Education. This support is led by GESCI's recently engaged Rwandan Country Programme Facilitator, based in-country for the duration of GESCI's direct engagement with Rwanda. -
GESCI partners with India
Education Secy approves a proposal for GESCI to assist Dept of Education, MHRD in developing the National Policy for ICT in School Education -
InfoDev publishes Survey of ICT and Educatin in Africa
This report synthesises the findings from a survey that was initiated by the Information for Development
Program (infoDev), a multi-donor partnership housed at the
......to finish -
OLPC Production begins
The One Laptop Per Child Association, Inc. (OLPC) is a U.S. non-profit organization set up to oversee the creation of an affordable educational device for use in the developing world. -
Independent Evaluation of TechNa!(Namibia) finds that 'GeSCI successfully played a neutral role while enabling the MoE to take ownership as GeSCI’s partner throughout the planning process'.
-
GESCI signs MoU with CSDMS
GESCI begins working with the Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies in India to facilitate its partnership with the Ministry for Human Resources and Development. -
Independent Evaluation of GESCI finds that 'Against a background of technologies failing to achieve their potential in education, this evaluation finds that GeSCI is carving out an important niche'.
-
GESCI publishes 1:1 Technologies/Computing in the Developing World: Challenging the Digital Divide
The 1:1 paper is developed by GESCI to spark a discussion on the issues and challenges related to introducing 1 to 1 devices (laptops, PDAs ) initiatives in educational systems in development contexts. -
The UNESCO ICT Competency Framework is launched
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First draft of Indian's National ICT4E Policy presented to government by GESCI and partners
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AKE Part II held in Kigali, Rwanda
The AKE Part II is held in Kigali on June 23 - 26 2008. The workshop brings together participants from nine African countries (Uganda, Kenya, Senegal, Namibia, South Africa, Rwanda, Tanzania and Ghana) to develop, identify, test and share emerging practices on the integration of ICTs in education/e-learning. Representatives from Ministries of Education, research institutions, and non-for-profits attend the four-day event. -
Rwanda Launches OLPC Project
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GESCI publishes OLPC Regional Case studies
The OLPC Regional Case Study series describes
some of the steps invovled in the development of
1:1 projects in terms of planning, monitoring and
evaluation. It is one of the first to be published on OLPC. -
GESCI develops widely acclaimed Total Cost of Ownership (TC) Toolkit
The TCO toolkit is designed to help identify and cost the range of possible ICT solutions at the school, regional and national level for small to large scale deployments. It is specifically designed with examples for 1:1 educational models, but can be used for any ICT4E deployment. -
GESCI develops organisational capacity audit tool
This tool is developed with the following objectives in mind:
• To create a common understanding internally of what constitutes an organizations’ capacity
• To provide structure for GESCI’s staff in auditing the capacity of the organizations and units
it chooses to work with in order to offer targeted capacity building support
• To provide a tool to be used by GeSCI during the country selection process to audit the
capacities of MoE and subsequently help in developing appropriate engagemen -
GESCI assists Ghana MoE to create its first ever Curriculum Framework
A major achievement is the development of the first
ever Ghanaian Curriculum Framework which outlines the
rationale, philosophy and goals for pre-tertiary education.
A document describing this framework development
process is published by UNESCO in 2009. -
16 million female children not in primary school in SSA
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UNESCO publishes ICT Compentency Standards
Developed in cooperation with Cisco, Intel and Microsoft, as well as the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), the ICT Competency Standards for Teachers are designed to help educational policy-makers and curriculum developers identify the skills teachers need to harness technology in the service of education. -
GESCI holds a North/South Research Partnerships Workshop
In order to disseminate and brainstorm the initial
findings of the meta-review, GESCI holds a North/
South Research Partnerships Workshop in April
2009. More than 50 ICT in Education representatives
gathered to share existing experiences of partnerships
in the area of ICT in Education research in general
and the potential opportunities for developing and
enhancing research efforts that are relevant to the
issues and challenges of GESCI’s partner countries in
the developing world. -
GESCI publishes Research Report for GeSCI Meta-Review of ICT in Education
GESCI Meta Review on ICT in EducationThis second phase of a comprehensive meta-review of educational ICT research and practice
addresses global developments reflected in the research and development literature appearing
since 2006. Completed in April 2009, the Phase One (P1) report comprised a synopsis of
research related to GeSci’s five thematic inquiry priorities. Preliminary findings identified in the
initial P1 report were presented by Dr. Patti Swarts, Manager of the GeSci Africa Regional
Programme, in the GeSci-facilitated No -
GESCIpresents at the WSIS m-learning session with UNESCO
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WSIS Forum 2009 Geneva
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Third African Knowledge Exchange (AKE) Workshop held in Accra, Ghana
The third African Knowledge Exchange (AKE) workshop on 21st century skills, ICTs, Curriculum and Assessment is held in Accra. The three-day workshop is held under the theme: "Setting the scene for 21st century learning: ICT, Curriculum & Assessment". -
GESCI supports working group meeting in Ghana on IE
GeSCsupports a Working Group Meeting on IE in which
representatives from the university sector, the divisions
and agencies of the MoE/GES, UNESCO and GESCI
meet to clarify progress, identify gaps and plan a way
forward for IE development in Ghana. -
GESCI creates e-content evaluation tool
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GESCI launches its first Research Facilitation for ICT4E integration Framework
For research to have any impact, the results must
inform and shape policies and programmes and
be adopted in practice. It is our understanding that
research alone cannot effectively develop education
practice if research results are not understood at
policy level. GESCI’s research framework is developed to
address this gap. -
GESCI ICT TPD Matrix trialled in Tanzania Workshop
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GESCI launches bespoke Curriculum & Assessment intervention in Ghana
GESCI develops a tailor-made C&A
intervention in Ghana in 2009, bringing together
C&A change agents from over 15 African Countries. -
Mobile phone subscriptions in developing countries reach 3.7 billion
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GESCI pilots e-content development costing tool in 10 African countries
Costing e-content is identified as an issue of
concern by the African Knowledge Exchange
community. In response to the needs of Ministries
of Education as represented by the AKE community,
GESCI develops an e-Content Development Costing
Tool to assist National Curriculum Development
Centres (NCDCs) to identify and assess the
components that may lead to either adopting, adapting or acquiring digital content. -
WSIS Forum 2010 Geneva
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GESCI and the Rwandan MINEDUC develop the ICT Teacher Professional Development Matrix
ICT TPD MatrixThe MINEDUC-GeSCI partnership developed a problem definition document in the area of ICT in Teacher Professional Development (ICT TPD) and followed this with a data collection from Pre and In-service Teacher Training Colleges and Institutions. The findings from these processes have been discussed and analyzed in a multi-stakeholder workshop conducted in April 2009. As a result of the workshop discourse and on the basis of the UNESCO ICT Competency Standards for Teachers, the Rwanda ICT TPD matri -
GESCI's research underpins ELA Ministerial Roundtable 2010
The 5th eLearning Africa Conference in Lusaka, Zambia, sees ministers, diplomats
and government officials from Angola, Finland, Kenya, Liberia, the Netherlands,
Malawi, Mali, Namibia, Rwanda, Senegal, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, gather
for the 3rd Ministerial Round Table to discuss and explore key issues related to the
following theme:
Leadership for Creating Inclusive Education Systems for Inclusive Knowledge
Societies: The Role of ICT. -
Phase 1 of the African Leadership in ICT Programme commences
Phase 1 covering 12 months starts in June
2010 and focuses on participatory design,
planning, piloting and testing of appropriate
models for capacity building and preparation
for implementation. -
GESCI assists Rwandan MINEDUC to undertake a capacity audit of the NCDC's e-content dvelopment capacity
GESCI assists Rwandan MoE to assess its capacity to develop e-content. -
The Kenya MoHEST, MoYAS and GESCI identifies lecturer/instructor ICT competencies foreffective integration of ICT in education.
The Ministry of Higher Education Science and Technology (MoHEST) and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MoYAS) in collaboration
with GESCI, hold a three day workshop with the goal of
identifying the lecturer/instructor ICT competencies for
effective integration of ICT in education. -
GESCI supports the completion of the first draft of the ICT Competency Framework for Lecturers and Instructors in Kenya
-
The East African Submarine Cable system (EASSy) enters service
The Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) is an undersea fibre optic cable system connecting countries in Eastern Africa to the rest of the world. EASSy runs from Mtunzini in South Africa to Port Sudan in Sudan, with landing points in nine countries and is connected to at least ten landlocked countries — which will no longer have to rely on satellite Internet access to carry voice and data services. EASSy is the highest capacity system serving sub-Saharan Africa, with more than 10 tera -
Development of joint ICT in Education plan between GESCI and the MoYAS Kenya
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The African Union Commission, Finland and GESCI sign momentus partnership agreement for ICT and Leadership in Africa
On Friday, the 15th of October 2010 at the African Union Headquarters, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the implementation of the African Leadership in ICT (ALICT) program is designedby the African Union Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology, H.E. Jean-Pierre EZIN, The Finnish Ambassador to Ethiopia, H.E. Leo Olasvisrta, and the CEO of the Global eSchools and Community Initiative, Dr. Jyrki Pulkkinen. -
The African Leadership in ICT Programme is officially launched
-
GESCI publishes Guide to the conscientious purchase, use and disposal of ICT.
Guide to responsible use and disposal of e-waste GeSCI’s objective in producing the Green ICT Guide is to provide ICT stakeholders, including teachers, students, principals and policy makers with access to up-to-date information on the responsible acquisition, use and disposal of ICT. -
Institutionalisation of the National Environment Management Agency (NEMA) and GESCI partnership
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The GESCI Rwandan MINEDUC Partnership Evaluation completed successfully.
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Final Draft ICT in Education Policy developed by GESCI and Rwandan MINEDUC.
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First draft ICT in Education Strategic Implementation Plan developed by MINEDUC with support from GESCI.
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There are 29.8 million out of school children of primary age in SSA
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GESCI completes the first ever baseline study on the use and extent of ICT integration in technical and vocational tertiary institutions in Kenya.
This baseline study informed the ICT integration strategy for the Ministry of Higher Education in Kenya by providing them and other stakeholders with access to current data required for planning and prioritisation. This study was used to informed the ICT in Education strategy. -
WSIS Forum 2011 Geneva
-
Phase 1 of the African Leadership in ICT Programme starts
Phase 2 covering 24 months starts in June
2011, and focuses on the implementation of the model
and building the capacity
of selected African leaders. -
GESCI publishes Assessment of Environmental, Institutional and Individual Leadership Capacity Needs for the Knowledge Society in Africa: A Situational and Needs Analysis in Four Countries - Mauritius, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia.
This four paper
series which documents the state of the knowledge society in the East and Southern
African regions is widely disseminated by GESCI and adds decisively to the
knowledge base on KS in Africa. The purpose of the study is to define the learning
needs and capacity gaps of African leaders in ICTs and the Knowledge Society. -
The Kenya Ministry for Higher Education Science and Technology in partnership with GESCI conclude Kenya's first ever baseline survey of ICT use in TIVET institutions.
GeSCI strategic advice is supported by data. In terms of teacher, lecturer and
instructor standards and competencies for ICT, we undertake a series of measures
before we advise our partners. We use our own bespoke ICT in Education capacity
audit, and undertake a situational analysis and baseline survey to determine
partners’ needs and abilities in a variety of ICT in Education contexts. The Kenya
Ministry for Higher Education Science and Technology in partnership with GeSCI
is conducting a basel -
GESCI completes its technical assistance and capacity building programme with the Ghana Ministry of Education (MoE)
In August 2011 GESCI successfully completes its
technical assistance and capacity building programme
with the Ghana Ministry of Education (MoE) after it
assisted the MoE and the Ghana Council on Technical
and Vocational Education and Training (COTVET) to
secure for them funding of USD$100 million from the
World Bank and African Development Bank, for a largescale
technical, vocational and skills development
programme. -
GESCI becomes an International Organisation hosted by the Kenyan Government.
-
UN targets 60% global internet penetration by 2015
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ALICT course implementation begins in 5 countries with 110 participants.
-
WSIS Forum 2012 Geneva
-
250 million additional people come online in 2012.
-
ALICT is awarded academic accreditation by Dublin City University (DCU).
Dublin City Univeristy (DCU), following intensive talks with GESCI and a thorough vetting of
the ALICT course, award ALICT academic accreditation. Successful participants are eligible for the award of
Postgraduate Diploma in Leadership in ICT and the Knowledge Society by DCU. -
Over 650 applications are received for the African Leadership in ICT course.
-
GESCI begins working on the Ghana Senior High Schools Connectivity Project.
The Ghana Senior Highschools Connectivity (SHS) Project is created for the sole purpose of increasing senior highschool students’ access to information and communication technology by providing and supporting internet connectivity to senior highschools. USAID, the Ghana Ministry of Education (MoE), the Ghana Education Services (GES), Vodafone and GESCI are the project’s implementing partners. -
Second round of African Leadership in ICT course commences.
-
African Knowledge Exchange Digital Creative Media course is launched by GESCI.
Nairobi’s Kenya Institute of Education (KIE) is the setting for the launch
of the African Knowledge Exchange Digital Creative Media course. Here15 aspiring
young digital creatives gather daily with experts and tutors in animation,
graphic design, gaming and apps development, and digital music production
for 12 weeks to be furnished with the kind of digital creative media skills that
knowledge intensive industries now demand, both in Kenya and beyond. -
Republic of Korea tops ICT ranking for 3rd year in a row
-
Te Rwanda Govt. has deployed 210000 laptops to schools
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GESCI hosts AKE Innovation Policy Forum in Nairobi, Kenya
In January 2013 at Nairobi’s Kenya Institute of Education (KIE), policy makers and researchers convened to meet some of the great talent driving Africa’s creative digital media industry to discuss how policy can be better developed and implemented to nurture innovation, entrepreneurship and enterprise in Africa. -
An independent evaluation of GESCI finds that very important changes can be attributed to GESCI.
In 2012 GESCI underwent an evaluation by a team of independent evaluators who are familiar with GESCI outputs, have extensive experience of the development sector and are experts in ICT for development. The evaluation measured relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, impact, accountability and transparency. The evaluation found that very positive changes could be attributed to GESCI activities. These included causal relationships between GESCI programme activities and the recipient -
Cisco announces that Mobile data traffic to grow 66% a year to 2017 - World.
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AKE Digital Creative Media Students graduate.
After three months of collaborative and innovative work on
gaming and apps, digital music production, graphic design and animation, the
students gather at Alliance Francaise, Nairobi, to show-case an impressive
display of work. -
51 percent of young women and 43 percent of young men are unemployed in Sub-Saharan Africa.
-
GESCI successfully delivers all outputs for Intel's Spark the Child Project.
Intel is researching best practices, policy implications and the value of ICT transformation through its Education Transformation Research project that studies the integration of technology into educational settings across Intel deployed eLearning settings. Intel requested GESCI’s technical assistance with ethnographic / qualitative research to work in collaboration with Intel country teams, to carry out Phase 1 of its project in Kenya. -
Kenya announces Laptop for Schools programme.
Kenya announces an ambitious plan to deliver 1.3m laptops to schoolchildren. The project will cost more than $600m (53bn Kenyan shillings/£400m) and implementation will begin this year. -
Strengthening Innovation and Practice in Secondary Education (SIPSE) project is launched by the MasterCard Foundation and GESCI.
Poor student performance in Science Technology, English and Mathematics (STEM) is in many developing countries one consequence of poor teaching in these subjects. Education must be made relevant to the needs of a 21st century society, and teachers are key to realising this objective. The SIPSE project, which was launched in June 2013 pilots the innovative use of ICTs to train secondary school teachers to improve their pedagogical skills and ability to integrate ICT into their teaching practice. -
213 of Africa’s future leaders graduate from the African Leadership in ICT (ALICT) Course at Kenya’s Great Rift Valley.
213 future leaders graduate from the African Leadership in ICT Course
On Friday 5th July 2013 in one of the largest African Union Commission initiatives in
professional development. 213 government and public sector officials from 12 African
countries (and the AUC) graduated from a bespoke leadership course implemented by
GESCI and titled African Leadership in ICT (ALICT) and Knowledge Society Development. -
Ghana Senior HighSchools Connectivity Project successfully concludes.
The Ghana Senior High Schools Connectivity Project was created with the sole purpose of increasing access to information and communication technology education for students in Ghana by providing and supporting internet connectivity to SHS in Ghana. The project concluded successfully in July 2013 having achieved the following:
• Internet connectivity has been installed in 377 schools out of 400 (94%)
• 400 servers were deployed in all the 400 schools
• 336 (84%) out of the targeted 400 ICT school -
58% of countries and territories around the world do not have enough teachers in classrooms to achieve Universal Primary Education (UPE) reveals the UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
-
For every 100 primary school-age children today, there will be 143 in 2030 reveals the UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
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The numbers of pupils enrolled in primary and lower secondary education have soared by 66% and 123% respectively since 1999 in SSA reveals UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
-
UNESCO Institute for Statistics predicts chronic teacher shortages over the next 15 years
The world will need an extra 3.3 million primary teachers and 5.1 million lower secondary teachers in classrooms by
2030 to provide all children with basic education. -
40% of the world is online.........
– but 1.1 billion households – or 4.4 billion people – remain unconnected -
Sub-$50 Android smartphone hits South Africa as MTN launches Steppa.
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Africa's International Bandwidth Growth set to lead the world.
According to new data from TeleGeography’s Global Bandwidth Forecast Service, Africa is expected to lead the world in international bandwidth demand growth in the coming years. Africa’s international bandwidth demand is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 51% between 2012 and 2019. At this rate, African demand would outpace that of both Latin America and the Middle East, which are each projected to rise 37% annually. Countries in sub-Saharan Africa, especially, will contribute to the -
Brazil now home to 273.58m mobile subscriptions
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GESCI lauches third round of the ALICT course across 13 African countries.
