A scheme has been put in place for four thousand five hundred teachers nationwide to benefit from a hands-on practical training and experience with Information Communications Technology (ICT) devices and applications as part of the Ministry of Education’s initiative of training teachers in ICT. The training which will be undertaken with the support of rLG Ghana will train the teachers in basic software applications such as word, excel, windows, and internet browsing among others to equip them with the necessary skills that will enable them impart ICT knowledge to school children they teach. The Group Head of Information Technology (IT) of rLG Mr. Paul Akonnor disclosed this at a colourful ceremony to present certificates of participation to the first batch of beneficiaries from the Upper West Region. He said the training has become necessary due to the importance attached to roles played by teachers in education and upbringing of children in the country. Mr. Akonnor said ICT is a driving global force geared towards development especially in the way people live and work as well as do business and any country that fails to tap into it will be left behind. He said it is in this regard that the Ministry of Education thought it wise and proper to give training to teachers in the country to understand the use of ICT for their own benefits as individuals and for the benefit of the pupils they guide as teachers in the classroom. Mr Akonnor hinted that as part of the broader programme, a number of laptops will be presented to some beneficiaries under the mathematics, Science and Technology Scholarship (MASTES) programme initiated by the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology to promote teaching and learning of science in the country. Mr Akonnor said being a key private sector partner in the initiative; rLG will present 1500 laptops nationwide to underscore the practical implementation and progress of the Better Ghana Agenda with ICT as one project by the government to better the lot of the people. He called for support for the initiative to enable it build an ICT base country with the best human resource for all industries in the country. The Upper West Regional Minister Alhaji Issaku Saliah said the government will continue to lend a hand to initiatives that support the holistic development of the child including training in ICT. He said it is important for all to come to understand the fact that computers have taken different forms and shapes and in terms of what one can get out of its usage. Alhaji Saliah called on the children to take full advantage of the computer world and be aware of the negative forms of the system, saying “Use the computers for good things; things that will encourage your capacity and move away from those negative ones”. The first face of the project has eleven schools from the Region benefitting from the project. They include Lawra senior high and ten other basic schools selected from all district in the region. The basic schools were given 15 laptops while Lawra senior high school had 10 for the start.