Network Support for Online Learning
China vowed to continue efforts to expand the coverage of broadband network and upgrade Internet access among primary and secondary schools to facilitate online learning for students amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said February 17.
Efforts will be made to encourage three major telecommunications operators - China Telecom, China Mobile and
China Unicom - to roll out more convenient online learning services like cloud classrooms and free livestreaming, the MIIT said. China Telecom, for instance, has provided online classes for primary and secondary schools across the country, with an average of over 10 million students taking the classes every day. Greater support has been given to Hubei Province, the epicenter of the outbreak, enabling over 240,000 students to have access to cloud classrooms.
China has postponed the spring semester due to the coronavirus outbreak that has infected over 70,000 people nationwide as of February 16. Millions of students staying at home turned to online learning as the back-to-school season started.
The MIIT said it would further pool its resources to provide greater assistance to students’ online learning.
TANZANIA Music Festival
Sauti za Busara, one of Africa’s leading festivals, kicked off on February 13 at Tanzania’s Zanzibar Old Fort in Stone Town, bringing together a wide array of artists from across the African continent.
Yusuf Mahmoud, Director of the Sauti za Busara festival, called on visitors from all corners of the world to join in numbers to witness and participate in the unique spectacle.
“Today, we kick off a unique and special time in the year when Zanzibar hosts four days and nights of non-stop African music under African skies,” Mahmoud told a news conference.
He added that the festival has three stages with 100 percent live music for everyone, including free performances every day at Forodhani Gardens on the Spice Islands.
He said the festival was set to pay tribute to some of the recently departed African stars who left their mark on the world music industry.
“As we celebrate the rhythms and vitality of African music, we also acknowledge the enormous contribution made by figures who departed this world during the past 12 months,” said Mahmoud.
ZAMBIA Smart Education
Chinese telecommunication giant Huawei on February 5 signed an agreement with the Zambian Government aimed at promoting the use of modern technology in higher learning institutions.
The Smart Education program aims to provide holistic learning solutions to students using modern technology in order to fully prepare them for a fast-changing world.
Higher Education Minister Brian Mushimba said Smart Education offers a unique paradigm shift in the way students access education and that Zambia should not be left behind in the use of digital technologies in the provision of learning materials.
“The current status of Smart Education in Zambia and where we ought to be is what has necessitated this strategic partnership with a technical giant like Huawei which has vast experience in building Smart Education platforms for learning institutions across the globe,” he said.
According to him, the essence of the agreement was to further cooperation in ensuring smart learning for all learners across the country to ensure that the people of Zambia do not stay behind.
RWANDA Plastics Ban
Rwanda launched on February 12 an awareness campaign to cease the use of single-use plastics in the country as stipulated in a law enacted last year.
“The law against single-use plastics was passed last year, but people continue to use the banned plastics which pose a serious threat to our environment and planet,” Rwandan Minister of Environment Jeanne d’arc Mujawamariya told a press conference in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda.
The ban on single-use plastic items is part of an international effort to reduce environmental pollution and people should consider alternatives to single-use plastics, said Mujawamariya.
Single-use plastic items that are used only once before being thrown away or recycled such as plastic straws, water bottles, coffee stirrers and disposable dishes are prohibited in Rwanda and those caught dealing in those plastics will be punished by law, she added.