Kofi Annan ICT Centre, KTU partner to provide digital skills for youth in Eastern Region

The Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT (GI-KACE) has formalised a partnership with Koforidua Technical University (KTU) through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). 

Established over two decades ago, GI-KACE has been instrumental in bridging the digital divide by providing ICT training across rural and urban communities in Ghana.

This collaboration thus forms part of GI-KACE's initiative to deliver digital skills training to communities in the Eastern Region, marking a significant step toward enhancing digital skills training on a national scale.

It aims to equip students and community members with vital practical skills.

Present at the signing ceremony were the Director of Research and Innovation at GI-KACE, Frederick Yeboah; Director of Corporate Affairs at GI-KACE, Kobi Hemaa Osisiadan-Bekoe.

The team from KTU included the Registrar, Evelyn Fafa Adom; University Librarian, Dr Edward Asante; Dean of International Programmes and Institutional Linkages, Dr Frank Agyei Dwomoh; Deputy Registrar in charge of the Vice Chancellor's Secretariat, Franklin Odoom, and Head of ICT, Emmanuel Opoku Debrah.

Potential impact

At the MoU signing ceremony at KTU, the Director-General of GI-KACE, Dr Collins Yeboah-Afari, expressed enthusiasm about the agreement and the potential impact it would have in driving the digital agenda.

He emphasised that the partnership would facilitate the implementation of the eSkills4Jobs programme in the Eastern Region, which is aligned with Ghana's broader digitalisation agenda and the Ghana Digital Acceleration Project (GDAP).

“The eSkills4Jobs initiative aims to foster a resilient ecosystem to prepare Ghana’s workforce for the digital economy.

“This MoU enables GI-KACE to collaborate with KTU in offering training programmes focused on digital skills and capacity development in the region,” Dr Yeboah-Afari emphasised.

Practical skills

The Vice-Chancellor of KTU, Prof. John Owusu, also conveyed his optimism regarding the partnership, emphasising that the eSkills4Jobs programme would significantly benefit the youth and residents of the Eastern Region.

He explained that by introducing practical digital skills training, the initiative aimed to empower students and stimulate local economic growth through the development of a digitally literate workforce.

eSkills4Jobs

The eSkills4Jobs training commenced on October 14, 2024, across several regions, including Greater Accra, Ashanti, Central, Volta, Bono, Northern, Upper East, Western North, Eastern, and Bono East.

The programme focuses on equipping participants with practical skills in areas such as web technology, data analytics with Power BI, data science, graphic design & multimedia technology, Microsoft AI, cybersecurity operations, digital marketing, AI for office productivity and blogging.