ICT awareness drive due this month

Government is later this month set to launch an awareness campaign aimed at maximising the benefits of Information Communication Technology. “The awareness campaign will reinforce quick sharing of information and thus quick reaction to citizens concern,” stated Cyrille Turatsinze, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government during a news conference last week.Despite efforts to develop ICT in the country, there is still lack of awareness and skills to maximise the benefits, according to the PS. The Global Information Technology Report 2012 indicates that ICT readiness in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is still low, displaying poor skill levels that do not allow for efficient use of available technology. The report cites that most countries show significant lags in connectivity due to insufficient development of ICT infrastructure which also remains too costly.Turatsinze further talked of ICT penetration and application in local governments and how it benefits local communities.He noted that during the drive, government will map ICT infrastructure across the country and identify centres with well equipped computer laboratories and how citizens can benefit from them.Mapping of ICT facilities will be conducted in both private and public institutions, including schools, Non-Government Organisations (NGO), health centres and business development centres to be used for training.Last year, the Government began the implementation of a five year National ICT strategy, that focuses on skills development, community development, private sector development, E-government and cyber security.“Community development is a major component of ICT development in the country. Yet still, there are challenges like skills (deficiency) for the project to be successful,” Turatsinze said.Reports spell out that dossiers at the local government level get lost due to long processes in processing them. However, courtesy of the Rwanda Development Board, a document tracking project is underway and is due for completion by the end of this year.Yet, in some districts, power cuts are cited as a major challenge to internet connectivity in all districts.