By Ezeh Anya Ezeh, Bureau Chief, South East

In keeping with his mantra of ‘Everything Technology and Technology Everywhere’, the Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo, on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, distributed 2,000 brand new laptops to headteachers, ICT teachers, and principals of public and public-mission schools across the state.

The distribution aligns perfectly with the vision of Mr. Governor, which the Anambra State ICT Agency is driving, to ensure the full digitization of all sectors of the state economy.

The implication of headteachers, ICT teachers, and principals owning laptops is that they will fully key into the digitization vision of Mr. Governor and, as such, guide school pupils and students early in their lives to join the digital revolution in the state.

 In Governor Soludo’s speech, “The teachers are molders of men and women and as such, critical partners in the new Anambra project.

And if you want to predict the future of any society, look at the quality of their teachers.”

He said the state cannot be talking about Everything Technology and Technology Everywhere when the teachers and headteachers are still in analog mode.

“We have begun and as resources permit us, we will continue to prioritize work tools for our teachers and students.

We will also continue to scale up the numbers.

“We have launched the free public Wi-Fi in some strategic places and we will scale it too to the schools to begin to create the opportunity for the ingenuity and creativity of our students and pupils to find expression.

”We are deliberate about our young people because of their capacity to uptake the technological availings and make the most out of it.

“Therefore, the teachers need to be ahead in terms of technology to be able to champion 21st-century education that is technology-driven.

 “We had started with the civil servants and we want to get to the point where every teacher would have their laptops as they have their phones.

 “We are very intentional about it that we must provide you with the enabling work tools you require to get our children to the next level we desire technology-wise.

While we aspire to get your schools to be smart, you too must be first smart.

“We have to upscale because you can’t give what you don’t have.

“We have the Head of our ICT Agency and the Solution Innovation District here and we are looking at working with them to have structured training programs, to ensure they put these equipment to use, exploring the latest Artificial Intelligence enablements,” the governor promised.

 Soludo maintained that in the last 24 months, the Anambra people have seen the transformation his administration had brought into the state governance, which has positively affected the lives of our people, assuring that more is to come.

On his part, the Managing Director of the State ICT Agency, Mr. Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, CFA, who played a key role at the event held at the International Conference Centre, Awka, said the governor has again by the distribution, reinforced commitment towards making Anambra State a technology hub, not only in the Southeast but also in the entire nation.

 Agbata noted that capturing the teachers in the digitization revolution signifies a brighter future for the state, considering how critical young people are to the state’s technological advancement.

He made it clear that the state has been able to make giant strides in the technology area because Mr. Governor believes in the power of technology and has stepped out a strong foot in terms of investment in the sector.

 “Today, the Governor has made Wi-Fi available in some public places where the people’s creativity needs to be enhanced in the areas of education, commerce, and public service.

“There is no doubt that with Mr. Governor’s mindset, better days are ahead for technology.

“For us at the ICT agency, the training which Mr. Governor spoke about is a no-brainer.

“Recall that the ICT Agency has partnered with relevant government agencies to bring technology to ease recruitment processes across various sectors and we are doing more.

“This is just to say that we are ready to drive the ‘Everything Technology and Technology Everywhere’ vision of Mr. Governor, to make Mr. Governor’s dream for a digitized Anambra State, a reality,” Agbata assured.

 Some of the recipients of the laptops, whose joys knew no bounds, described Governor Soludo as a proactive leader, who is conscious of the need of the times.

Promising to deploy the equipment effectively for the purpose it was intended, the headteachers and principals said they are at home with the digital revolution the governor is bringing to the state education sector.

 The high point of the ceremony was the distribution of the laptops as well as solidarity chants by the beneficiaries.

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