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Project name: CatchITYoung
Location: Schools throughout Ghana
Vision/Theme: To educate the youth
about ICT and introduce them to the skills need to prosper
in the information economy. Young people should be at
the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered,
they can be the key agents for development and peace.
If, however, they are left on society's margins, all
of us will be impoverished. Let us ensure that all young
people have every opportunity to participate fully in
the lives of their societies.
Rationale: Ghana needs to develop
its youth through strategic decision-making, policies
formulation, program design and implementation, for
the youth by the youth and of the youth--that will help
Ghana and Africa bridge the digital divide. A united
youth front backed by practical ICT tools for empowerment
can make a tremendous difference in forwarding effective
national development strategies when combined with readiness
and a deeply held commitment to spearhead the revolution.
Information and communications technologies have a
key role to play in the development of human capacity
particularly the youth—tomorrow’s leaders.
The youth in Africa need to take the initiative in working
to position Africa strategically in this era of globalization
and free market economies.
This opportunity was ripe when the United Nations General
Assembly, on 21st December 2001 adopted a resolution
(A/RES/56/183) which gave UN Secretary General, Kofi
Annan the authority to hold the World Summit on Information
Society (WSIS). The mission of WSIS is to develop a
global framework to approach the challenges posed by
the information society, and fully and equally take
advantage of the opportunities it presents.
Project Design: Information Technology
Clubs in Ghanaian primary and secondary schools complement
conventional education curriculum and teach students
how to use computers and the internet, increasing student
performance.
Implementation: CatchITYoung will
pilot with thirty (30) students each in both first and
cycle schools with ten from each level i.e. ten (10)
first year, ten (10) second year and ten (10) third
year. In the second cycle, it will comprise a fair representation
of students from all disciplines (Science, Business,
Agriculture, Arts, Home Economics, Technical etc.).
At both educational levels, respect for gender balance
will be prominent to cater for equal inclusion of both
sexes.
Curriculum and Content Development
Exercises and projects, radio and or television
quiz programs will help evaluate, motivate and sustain
competition, develop and expose talents whilst setting
youth role models for the youth. Educational excursions
for both members and patrons will be embarked upon to
expose applications of ICT, network with IT professionals
for mentorship to enhance performance, relate theory
lessons to practical experience, etc.
Partners:
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1. |
International Young Professionals
Foundation (IYPF)-Ghana |
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2. |
African Youth Initiative (AYI) |
Goals:
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1. |
To inculcate basic computer literacy,
various office user applications, web design,
database management etc. in the youth who are
the nation's future and tomorrow's leaders. |
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2. |
To provide minimal universal Internet
access to valuable information and data as a catalyst
to expanding knowledge. |
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3. |
To compliment and support the
national human capacity development efforts by
building a platform to absorb and develop individual
talents and contributions using ICT, for the realization
of Ghana's vision. |
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4. |
Improve computer skills and IT
knowledge for teachers (club Patrons) by increasing
computer contact and Internet access hours through
access to computer laboratories and partner ICT
service providers. |
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5. |
To bridge the intra digital divide
(rural-urban access) as a means to consequently
bridging the divide between nations. |
Target Groups: Primary and secondary
students
Evaluation: Based on a scientific
analysis of the pilot project, corrective measures will
be adopted, and mechanisms set to expand CatchITYoung
nationwide to sustain the Ghana Digital Project and
Information and Communications Technology as a main
pillar in Ghana's development.
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Proposal |
