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The Global e-Schools and Communities Initiative is an international not-for-profit organisation providing demand-driven assistance to developing countries seeking to harness the potential of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to improve their education systems.
GeSCI was established in 2003, borne out of the work of the United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force which identified education as an area in critical need of development, and one where ICT has the potential to make positive impacts. The UN ICT Task Force approved a proposal for a UN-affiliated organisation to provide demand-driven assistance to developing countries seeking to harness the potential of ICT to improve the quality of teaching and learning in primary and secondary education. Until 2009, GESCI had its Headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. It was them moved to Kenya and now GESCI is registered under section 10 of the Non-Gevernmental Organizations Co-ordination Act of Kenya. Registration number 218/051/2007/0102/4537. Over the years, GESCI has received support from Irish Aid, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and Mastercard Foundation,Canada.
Education is considered one of the cornerstones of social economic development. Research has shown that education contributes to poverty reduction and increased economic growth, which in turn leads to an increase in the individual's standard of living; enables the individual to participate in wealth generating activities, leads to the creation of employment and the overall development of society. However, the traditional role of education to promote socio-economic development is being re-examined as greater emphasis is placed on access to education, quality and outcomes of the education system.
The education sector is seen as the natural source for the creation of technological literacy and the development of new technological skills as well as other skills that are needed in the new millennium, like problem solving skills, collaboration skills, critical reading and information retrieval, etc. For new technologies like ICT, the creation of these new skills has meant the introduction of ICT into educational institutions and the introduction of computer literacy or media literacy courses as well as new teaching and learning methods.
The relationship between ICT, education and development in a knowledge economy is increasingly being captured by developing country governments through their poverty reduction strategies [1]
Much of GESCI's work is with Government Ministries and their related agencies responsible for education, science & technology, innovation, and vocational training.
GESCI provides technical and strategic advice in developing and implement national strategies and plans to advance their overall education and development objectives in support of developing inclusive knowledge societies.
GESCI has built working relationships with Government ministries and their respective implementation organisations across more than 16 African countries and also with key international organisations.
The Africa-wide Alumni Network for policy-makers in Knowledge Society development has been launched to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This network comprises more than 500 alumni (with Graduate Diplomas from Dublin City University) who have participated in the African Leadership in ICT and Knowledge Society Development programme. 74 mid-to-senior level governments officials in Kenya graduated from this leadership programme.
Electronic services or e-services are services that make use of information and communication technologies (ICTs). The three main components of e-services are:
The United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force was a multi-stakeholder initiative associated with the United Nations which is "intended to lend a truly global dimension to the multitude of efforts to bridge the global digital divide, foster digital opportunity and thus firmly put ICT at the service of development for all".
Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications and computers, as well as necessary enterprise software, middleware, storage and audiovisual, that enable users to access, store, transmit, understand and manipulate information.
Calestous Juma was a Kenyan scientist and academic, specializing in sustainable development. He was named one of the most influential 100 Africans in 2012, 2013 and 2014 by the New African magazine. He was Professor of the Practice of International Development and Faculty Chair of the Innovation for Economic Development Executive Program at Harvard Kennedy School. Juma was Director of the School's Science, Technology and Globalization Project at Harvard Kennedy School as well as the Agricultural Innovation in Africa Project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Private sector development (PSD) is a term in the international development industry to refer to a range of strategies for promoting economic growth and reducing poverty in developing countries by building private enterprises. This could be through working with firms directly, with membership organisations to represent them, or through a range of areas of policy and regulation to promote functioning, competitive markets.
Education in Rwanda has undergone considerable changes throughout Rwanda's recent history, and has faced major disruptions due to periods of conflict. Education was divided by gender whereby women and men had a different education relevant to their responsibilities in day-to-day life. Women were mostly taught housekeeping while men were mainly taught how to hunt, raise animals, and fish. This is because Rwanda was a community-based society where every member had a specific contribution to the overall development of the community. Older family members like grandparents usually took on the role of educators.
The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) is the independent regulatory agency for the ICT industry in Kenya with responsibilities in telecommunications, e-commerce, broadcasting,cyber security, and postal/courier services. The CA is also responsible for managing the country's numbering and frequency spectrum resources, administering the Universal Service Fund (USF) as well as safeguarding the interests of users of ICT services.
Technology, society and life or technology and culture refers to the inter-dependency, co-dependence, co-influence, and co-production of technology and society upon one another. Evidence for this synergy has been found since humanity first started using simple tools. The inter-relationship has continued as modern technologies such as the printing press and computers have helped shape society. The first scientific approach to this relationship occurred with the development of tektology, the "science of organization", in early twentieth century Imperial Russia. In modern academia, the interdisciplinary study of the mutual impacts of science, technology, and society, is called science and technology studies.
The digital divide is described as the characterisation of the gap between individuals or countries that have access to information and communications technologies, primarily telecommunications and the Internet, and individuals or countries that do not. This also includes, but is not limited to: access to computers, broadband, information literacy and digital skills.
Information Technology in Sri Lanka refers to business process outsourcing, knowledge process outsourcing, software development, IT Services, and IT education in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is always ranked among the top 50 outsourcing destinations by AT Kearney, and Colombo and ranked among "Top 20 Emerging Cities" by Global Services Magazine. The export revenue of this industry grew from USD 213 million in 2007 to USD 1.2 billion in 2021.
21st century skills comprise skills, abilities, and learning dispositions identified as requirements for success in 21st century society and workplaces by educators, business leaders, academics, and governmental agencies. This is part of an international movement focusing on the skills required for students to prepare for workplace success in a rapidly changing, digital society. Many of these skills are associated with deeper learning, which is based on mastering skills such as analytic reasoning, complex problem solving, and teamwork, which differ from traditional academic skills as these are not content knowledge-based.
eLearning Africa is a three-day annual international conference on ICT-enhanced education, training and skills development in Africa which is organised by ICWE GMBH. Each year the event is hosted and co-organised by a different African government. It has been opened on previous occasions by presidents, Vice presidents and Prime Ministers of several African countries including Hage Geingob, Abdoulaye Wade, George Kunda, Edward Ssekandi, Pascal Koupaki, Mohamed Gharib Bilal and Debretsion Gebremichael. This pan-African conference focuses on the use of ICT and it tools to support education, training, skills and knowledge sharing across all sectors of Africa, enhancing Sustainable Development Goals across the continent and enabling participants to develop multinational and cross-industry contacts and partnerships, as well as to build up their expertise and abilities.
Science and technology in Tanzania describes developments and trends in higher education, science, technology, innovation policy, and governance in the United Republic of Tanzania since the turn of the century.
Educational technology in sub-Saharan Africa refers to the promotion, development and use of information and communication technologies (ICT), m-learning, media, and other technological tools to improve aspects of education in sub-Saharan Africa. Since the 1960s, various information and communication technologies have aroused strong interest in sub-Saharan Africa as a way of increasing access to education, and enhancing its quality and fairness.
Science and technology in Uganda refers to the growth within the technological industry in response to government efforts to develop a national innovation system, as well as any subsequent socioeconomic and cultural impacts of these endeavours.
The digital divide is a term used to describe the disadvantage in access to information which people without access to ICT suffer. Nigeria's digital divide refers to the inequality of Nigerian individuals, groups, or organizations with regard to access to Information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure or to the internet for daily activities. The digital divide has been attributed to many factors among which is the high cost of computer equipment, lack of ICT skill and poor knowledge of available search engines. Lack of access to ICT makes it difficult for people to access information. The benefits of having access to ICT are numerous. ICT has the potential to promote other sectors of the economy such as agriculture, education, health, bank, defence etc. In times of emergency, ICT becomes an indispensable tool for overcoming the barriers of time and distance. Education, lack of electrical infrastructure, income, urban drift, and a variety of other social and political factors contribute to Nigeria's growing digital divide.
The digital divide is an economic and social inequality with regard to access to, use of, or impact of information and communication technologies (ICT). Factors causing the divide can vary depending on the country and culture, as can the potential solutions for minimizing or closing the divide.
Digital intelligence is the sum of social, emotional, and cognitive abilities that enable individuals to face the challenges and adapt to the demands of life in the digital world. An emerging intelligence fostered by human interaction with information technology, it has been suggested that recognition of this intelligence will expand the scope of teaching and learning in the 21st century and all aspects of one's personal and professional lives.
Anambra State ICT Agency, established in 2019, is a parastatal under the Anambra State Government to drive ICT innovations for a digital state. The parastatal was established under the administration of the former Governor – Chief Willie Obiano. The Agency was charged with the responsibility of building a proactive live digital tribe to position the state in the global trend of positive smart States for sustainable development. Thus, it has the mantra, "Everything technology and technology Everywhere."