Huawei Ghana has partnered with the Communications Ministry to organise Cybersecurity training for 20,000 Senior High School Girls in the Ashanti Region.

This is under the first phase of its Seeds for the Future- Women in Tech programme to empower more women and girls in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics).

The training, which falls under the Ministry of Communications and Digitalization's National Girls-In-ICT programme, will engage 11 schools at the Senior High level to equip them on the fundamentals of cyber security and enable them to stay safe in cyberspace.

Some beneficiary schools for the first phase of the training include Kumasi Wesley Girls Senior High School, Yaa Asantewaa Senior High School, St Louis Senior High School, Serwaa Nyarko Girls, Kumasi Girls, Adventist Girls SHS, St Mary's Girls, Afua Kobi Ampem Girls, St Monica's, TI Ahmadiya and Prince of Peace Girls.

The second and third phases of the training will occur in the Central and Eastern Regions of Ghana, respectively, and it is expected to double the number of beneficiaries.

Speaking on the programme, the Deputy Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Ama Pomaa Boateng, mentioned that the initiative comes as part of efforts to continue empowering the youth with the technological skills they urgently need to thrive in the digital era.

She expressed the hope that much enthusiasm would be generated amongst girls to enhance ICT education in the country.

The Director of Public Relations for Huawei Ghana, Jenny Zhou, in expressing the ICT giant’s delight in partnering with the Ministry's Senior High School Edition of the Girls in ICT program, mentioned that Huawei will continue to provide support for initiatives targeted at empowering more females to take up roles in the tech space.

"In the digital era, the most important measure to bridge the digital gender gap is through education. Whether its college education or social training, we need to give women more opportunities to participate in the digital profession.” She said

The Cybersecurity training, which begun last Saturday, will focus on topics like Information Security, Cyber Bullying and Attacks, Child Online Protection Provisions in the New Cyber Security Act 2020, and tips on how to stay safe online.

The girls will also be sensitized on the need to report all cyber-related issues to the National Cyber Security Authority by sending SMS the shortcode 292 for prompt response and assistance.