Upgrade of digital skills of workers in gov’t agencies

The Minister of Communication and Digitalkisation, Ursula Owusu- Ekuful has said the Ministry is positioning itself as management of the IT class within the civil service and would require the services of the Ghana -India Kofi Annan – Center of Excellence in ICT ( KACE) to lead the conversation.

The Minister said the government intends to have complete linkages with all the IT departments in the civil service. She has therefore tasked the managers of the center to assist by upgrading the skills of the IT workers in various government agencies and departments. This is expected to improve conditions of service and create more jobs.

To this end, the Minister said just like the Auditor General does for the audit service there will be uniformity or linkages with all the IT class. According to the Minister she will conclude discussions on the matter with the Head of Local Government Service to see to the realization of this project.

She announced this when she inaugurated a nine-member board of the Ghana -India Kofi Annan Center of Excellence in ICT.

The board was further charged to marshal all efforts to assist management of the center to generate the necessary revenue.

Established in 2003 through the ingenuity of the then UN Secretary General, H.E. Kofi Annan, former President John Agyekum Kufuor and a partnership between the Government of India, KACE became Ghana’s first Advanced Information Technology Institute and has so far built capacity for over 40,000 students in Ghana, and other parts of the continent since inception.

The Minister said “Given the potential of the sector, you are at pole position to drive digital skills acquisition in Ghana. You need to be able to monetize your skills and tap into the world of opportunities. I am assuring you that the ministry will continue to support you”. She stressed.