latter aiming at improving the public services provided by the government to the citizens by using ICT in sector-based projects such as e-Education, e-Health, etc.. Understanding that education remains the foundation for development, the government decided to make e-Education an key component of the economic, social and cultural development of Côte d’Ivoire. Through e-Education, ICT resources will be made available to the entire education system of the country, with a focus on higher education, national education and technical and professional training.
"We chose the teaching sector because education is the basis for the development of society and it enables the emergence of future leaders" At the end of February 2013, at the mobile phone trade fair in Barcelona, Ivorian entrepreneur Thierry N'Doufou presented his “Qelasy” tablet exclusively designed for education (no question of playing Candy Crush or surfing on Facebook) and adapted to local realities owing to its water-tight and dust-resistant features. This project was developed in partnership with the government as part of its e-Education programme. The tablet includes every single school book used in Côte d’Ivoire, up to high school level, in digital format. The tablet has its own website where teachers can upload lessons, exercises, student marks, etc. which can then be downloaded using the tablet. "Qelasy",
which means "classroom", is the first educational tablet in Africa and will be marketed as from the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year. In this instance, ICT has been well thought-out as a resource for improving governance, the educational sector and service quality. It thus appears to offer a more effective solution to the different challenges of access to universal quality education.
ICT, FOR GREATER EMPLOYABILITY OF THE YOUTH? CEJEDER, a member of IDAY-RDC/Kivu developed the project: "Improving the education of young people in rural areas with ICT". It involves an IT centre providing computer training for the unemployed youth and youngsters who were withdrawn from armed groups and forces. This project aims at increasing their employability. According to Pele PELELO AMISI, Executive Secretary of CEJEDER, the modules chosen for this training will enable the beneficiaries to manage cybercafés among other things. ICT is an essential resource as it makes it possible to reach a wide audience within a short space of time, with lower costs and appealing formats. A State policy is necessary in order to make up rapidly and broadly for the cumulative delay in the use of ICT in rural development. This is why IDAY-RDC/Kivu is advocating media and government support for the project.
The contribution of ICT to education in Africa should be assessed in relation to education needs, notably for the most disadvantaged groups, and in terms of the resources able to be generated locally so as to meet all of these needs without being excessively dependent on external inputs. ICT undeniably offers promising solutions for certain challenges facing the education sector in terms of flexibility, teaching and learning resources, or even for opening up knowledge and information to as many people as possible. It is essential that African countries incorporate this technology which is increasingly moulding the socioeconomic framework and interactions on a global level. For all that, it is worth giving careful consideration to attractive "solutions" forcefully promoted with external support without taking into account local realities and priorities, at the risk of overlooking other essential aspects of education. The joint report issued by the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the African Union, eTransform Africa - The Transformational Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Africa (2012) spells it out clearly: the challenge to be met for the future of the continent is to succeed in ensuring that ICT innovations are aimed at all Africans, including the poor, the most vulnerable and the inhabitants of the most remote regions.
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