The second phase of the Community Digital Literacy Project aimed at providing more school children with relevant educational content and improve their reading skills has been launched in the Tamale Metropolis.
It is being undertaken by Vivo Energy Ghana, distributor of Shell branded fuels and lubricants in collaboration with Worldreader Ghana and the Northern Regional Library.
The project is in line with the company’s commitment to promoting education in its operational areas and complementing the government’s efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Four which aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.”
Under the phase one, 25 households within the Tamale Metropolis were trained and assigned BookSmart Tablets which provided the households unlimited access to Ghana Education Service-approved reading books for children of school-going age.
Since the inception of the programme in September 2021, more than 4,900 books have been read and completed across all 25 households with an average number of 29 books being completed per day.
Speaking on behalf of the company’s Managing Director, Shirley Tony Kum, Corporate Communications Manager of Vivo Energy Ghana, said, the project had made a significant impact adding that more resources were made available to expand the scope in the second phase.
The phase two, she said, would include an outreach to the schools with the support of a Mobile Library Van and a Lending option where heads of schools could request for the tablet to be used for a period and returned to the library for use by other schools.
Additionally, Booksmart tablets were also presented to the Northern Regional Library to expand the scope by enrolling more pupils onto the programme while beneficiaries were also given branded backpacks with educational items
Chief Director of the Northern Regional Coordinating Council, Mr Gilbert B. Nuuri-Teg, commended Vivo Energy Ghana for demonstrating a sense of commitment towards community development beyond its core business.
The Northern Regional Director of the Ghana Library Authority, Mr. Aaron Kuwornu lauded the initiative and called on parents and facilitators to encourage their children to make good use of the tablets.
He also stated that, the library would continue to find innovative ways for people to access books of their choice to read regardless of their location.
The Metro Director of Education, Tamale, Dr. Peter Attefuah, encouraged all stakeholders to give off their best in the second phase to help the children develop an interest in reading and enhance their ICT skills.
The Programmes Manager of Worldreader Ghana, AlhassanAbdul Kahad, encouraged heads of schools and households to take full advantage of the second phase of the project and emphasised the benefits of reading to the growth of societies and the country.
BY TIMES REPORTER