By Benjamin Adamafio Commey
Koforidua, Sept. 7, GNA – About 140,000 people have registered for the Government’s One Million Coders Programme, with more than 10,000 participants already completing their training.
Mr Samuel Nartey George, Minister of Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations, who announced the figures, said the programme, a flagship initiative of President John Dramani Mahama, was expected to record a significant increase in participation following the onboarding of universities and senior high schools across the country.
He said agreements had been signed with about 12 universities, while negotiations were ongoing with about 10 others, a development expected to accelerate enrolment from September.
“We have about 140,000 registrations. We have about 10,000 who have completed courses already and some of them have started a second phase,” Mr George said.
The Minister made the disclosure in an interview with the media on Friday, September 4, after visiting the Eastern Regional Innovation Centre, which also serves as a training centre for the One Million Coders Programme.
Mr George explained that the University of Ghana (UG) and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology had made the One Million Coders Programme compulsory for their Level 100 students.
According to him, the UG alone had almost 40,000 Level 100 students for the academic year, while the 12 universities that had signed agreements with the programme were expected to contribute close to 100,000 participants.
The Minister said the introduction of the programme as a compulsory course in participating institutions would contribute significantly to the Government’s target, as students would be required to complete the courses as part of their academic progression.
He said the next phase of the programme involved the onboarding of senior high schools, with several institutions already expressing interest.
Among them are Accra Girls Senior High School, Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School (PRESEC) and Bright Senior High School.
Mr George projected that the inclusion of universities and senior high schools could bring between 300,000 and 400,000 students onto the programme before the end of the year.
“…so, by the time you begin to onboard the senior high schools and the universities, we’re looking at between 300,000 to 400,000 students before the end of the year who will come on board the programme,” he said.
He, however, urged individuals who were not part of participating institutions to register independently, stressing that the programme was open to all Ghanaians and registration was free.
“We want to have as many people as possible to take the courses,” he said, encouraging parents, young people and other interested persons to take advantage of the opportunity.
Mr George said applicants could register using their national identification cards and urged the public to participate in the programme as the Government sought to equip Ghanaians with relevant coding and digital skills.
The One Million Coders Programme, a key initiative under President Mahama’s RESET Agenda, aims to train one million Ghanaians in coding and ICT skills over four years.
It forms part of Government’s efforts to expand access to digital skills and prepare more Ghanaians, particularly the youth, to take advantage of opportunities within the digital economy.
The Minister said the Government would continue to expand the programme nationwide, adding that the ongoing nationwide tour was also aimed at assessing infrastructure and identifying areas requiring immediate attention to support digital inclusion and skills development.
He commended officials of the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications, National Communications Authority, the Ministry, regional authorities and other stakeholders for supporting the implementation of the programme.
GNA
Edited by Lydia Kukua Asamoah
Reporter: Benjamin Adamafio Commey