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ICT facility for Asarekwaa Al Furqn Islamic Basic School

A solar-powered information and communications technology (ICT) facility has been inaugurated for the Asarekwaa Al Furqn Islamic Basic School in the Asikuma Odoben Brakwa District in the Central Region.

The project, which is an intervention (through the Cargill Rural Education Project), is to provide quality education to school pupils within its operational areas across the country.

Cargill Ghana Limited, a Tema-based cocoa purchasing and processing company, in partnership with Maersk Line and Computer Aid International, jointly inauguraged the Zubabox solar-powered internet-enabled Information and Communications Technology (ICT) facility.

The school has a student population of 390 with 11 teachers but has no ICT classroom and the intervention by Cargill and its partners will go a long way to enhance ICT teaching and learning in the school.

The Managing Director of Cargill West Africa, Mr Lionel Soulard, said the project was part of the worldwide project of Cargill International dubbed: ‘’Cargill Cocoa Promise,’’ stressing that one of the areas of attention was on health and education.

He stated that one of the ways of improving the livelihoods of people was the provision of education to students, adding that through that they could be equipped with the required knowledge and skills to engage in profitable businesses to improve their standard of living.

Essence of the project

He noted that the ICT classroom would enable the students to have access to information and bridge the gap between them and children in other parts of the world.

He charged the students to make good use of the facility to enable them to cope with the changes in the world as a result of technology.

He appealed to the school authorities and the community to maintain the facility to prolong its lifespan so that it would be replicated in other communities.

Address by Maersk Line

The Managing Director of Maersk Line, Mr Syed Naved Zafar, said his outfit continued to strive to create opportunities in global commerce, as well as ensure that the necessary platforms were created to facilitate exchange and trade between Africa and the rest of the world.

He explained that the Zubabox initiative clearly demonstrated cargill’s commitment towards working with other organisations to improve learning, enhance skills and impart knowledge to position students to compete with the best in the world.

“We believe the Zubabox initiative would go a long way to support the country’s drive for ICT literacy, education and development which are key elements towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals,’’ he added.

Practical ICT Training

A representative of Computer Aid International, Mr Richard Kettle, noted that the computers could work between 12 and 16 hours a day and that the facility had been designed and built for that kind of community.

He indicated that the provision of the facility would help do away with the theoretical teaching of ICT in the schools since the students could now practice what they are taught abstract in class.

District Chief Executive

Mr Samuel Adom Botchway commended Cargill, Maersk Line and Computer Aid for their timely intervention, stressing that the government welcomed such interventions towards the delivery of quality education to students across the country.

He urged the management of the school to ensure that the facility was well maintained.

Again, he commended the chiefs and elders of the town, as well as the District Co-ordinator of the project, Mr Abraham Amonoo, for their efforts towards the execution of the project.

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