The First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Ms Janet Kataha Museveni, has emphasized the importance of strengthening cyber security as institutions of learning increasingly adopt Information Communication Technology (ICT) gadgets for teaching and learning.
“Cyber security is very important because we must ensure that our learners and educators are not exposed to harmful or inappropriate material, while using these digital technologies for genuine purposes,” she said during the handover of nine technical institutes to contractors for expansion works and the launch of the Ministry’s Digital Agenda Strategy at the Hockey Grounds, Lugogo on August 22.
The Digital Agenda Strategy aims to improve teaching and learning outcomes through digitally enhanced curricula, increase equitable and efficient access to services via digital technologies, and promote research and innovation in digitization, including the use of Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality.
The First Lady noted that while measures have been put in place at the national level to ensure adequate cyber security, institutions and learners must also play their part to ensure that technology is used responsibly.
The government has given a green light to students to carry gadgets, including laptops, tablets, and smartphones, to school to ease the process of teaching, learning, and conducting research.
She emphasised the need to nurture the youthful population into a united, patriotic, innovative, and productive workforce, leveraging ICT and digital technologies to enhance national education outcomes and service delivery.
The Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Education and Sports, Dr Jane Egau Okou, said the government has made substantial investments in enhancing Technical Vocational Education Training (TVET) capacity to deliver essential skills needed for the country’s development.
The Head of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) regional hub of Kampala, Dr Issahaq Umar Iddrisu, said the bank has approved projects for Uganda with a cumulative amount of over US $1.6 billion since 1977.
