During a webinar on Huawei’s digital inclusion initiative TECH4ALL, Deputy Chairman Ken Hu announced Huawei’s vision for digital inclusion through education. He outlined a project to connect schools and skills development to improve equitable and quality education.
This includes Huawei South Africa’s DigiSchool project in partnership with operator rain and educational non-profit organisation Click Foundation, which aims to connect 100 urban and rural primary schools over the next year using 5G technology.
Improving Equitable and Quality in Education through Technology
Digital technology plays an important role in education. However, 50% of the world’s population still does not have Internet access, and many people lack the skills needed to use digital devices. As a result, the digital divide in education continues to widen.
Ken Hu said: “We believe that everyone, everywhere has the right to education and the equality of opportunity it brings. As a technology company, Huawei wants to help with connectivity, applications and skills by focusing on two important areas of connecting schools and developing digital skills respectively.”
In terms of connecting schools, Huawei will help to provide access to high-quality educational resources such as digital curriculums and e-learning applications, and teacher and student training by connecting school to the Internet with partners.
In South Africa, Huawei recently launched the DigiSchool project in partnership with operator rain and educational non-profit organization Click Foundation, which aims to connect 100 urban and rural primary schools over the next year.
“Through digital education, we not only address the literacy crisis in the country, but also provide young children with the digital skills needed for future success,” Nicola Harris, CEO, Click Foundation added at the webinar.
In terms of digital skills development, Huawei plans to provide digital skills training for vulnerable groups in remote areas, especially female students, through projects such as DigiTruck in a program called ‘Skills on Wheels.’
Since the launch of DigiTruck in Kenya at the end of last year, it has provided training for more than 1,500 young adults and teachers in rural areas. Huawei hopes to replicate the program in France, the Philippines and other countries in the next two years.
“These all solar-powered, mobile classrooms with wireless broadband access can reach even the most remote communities.” Olivier Vanden Eynde, CEO of Close the Gap, key partner of DigiTruck, said.
To watch Ken Hu’s speech and read his blog post on education, please visit https://blog.huawei.com/2020/06/23/driving-education-equality-with-technology/
