Computer students "bridging digital divide"

A group of 38 students has just graduated from an information and communications technology (ICT) course in Dar es Salaam, the focus of which was to promote development by bridging the so-called "digital divide" in least-developed countries like Tanzania. The students earned Cisco Certified Network Associate certificates - the same as that awarded to students at many US universities and high schools - after graduating from the University of Dar es Salaam computing centre, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which is supporting the programme. The programme, which it is proposed to expand throughout the country, is intended to help Tanzania increase the number of ICT professionals able to solve technical problems in the workplace and help make organisations more efficient. Through the initiative, Cisco provides training materials, and UNDP helps make the programme affordable. The four-month course normally costs approximately US $3,000 per student outside the US, but the new initiative (for which Tanzania is a leader among 24 African countries participating) cuts that in half, the UNDP reported on Tuesday. "The beauty of this programme is that it does not require any prior knowledge of computers or networks," said UNDP project officer Riku Asikainen, adding that the advantages to the students were far-reaching. The project includes employment counselling, and many graduates are expected to find jobs managing small and medium-sized computer networks for Tanzanian businesses and public institutions, according to the agency. Students need only basic secondary education, "plus the will to learn the curriculum", according to Asikainen. The training is uniform worldwide, so a grade of 95 out of 100 is the same in Tanzania or at Harvard, and this enhances the employability of graduates. John Magoha, a Tanzanian UN Volunteer, completed the programme and is one of 12 trainees who will teach at local Cisco Networking Academies to be established in different parts of the country. Students get "hands-on training with live scenarios from the professional Internet world, bridging the gap between academic study and professional work", Magoha said. "We not only learn how to implement and manage computer networks but also how to learn more through the Internet," he added. The Tanzanian programme is still at an early stage, and there are plans to make it part of normal university curricula in Tanzania, according to the UNDP. "All university graduates would benefit from such ICT skills," said Asikainen. "Therefore, we are planning to have the programme included in course work for computer science, engineering and other fields."