E-Resources - Gambia
E-RESOURCES IN THE GAMBIA
GOVERNMENT POLICY POSITION
The Gambian Government recognises the importance of private sector participation in the economy, both as an engine of growth and as a source of knowledge transfer. The ICT sector has been targeted as an industry with the potential for growth and the government are taking proactive steps toward stimulating investor interest and growth in the sector. This includes increased liberalisation of ICT services and the development of modern ICT legislation.
The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) has identified ICT as one of the core activities to be pursued at the July 22nd Business Park.
The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) is the Government Agency mandated to support companies with their investment, business and export development as well as support to MSMEs.
E-EDUCATION INTHE GAMBIA
The Gambia’s e-Education industry is in its infancy but recent and ongoing improvements to ICT connectivity and energy reliability are opening the country up as an excellent location for foreign investment. Its young and increasing population provide a large market for ICT in education, both as a tool in classrooms and as a facilitator of distance learning.
The Gambia has a range of projects in place designed to grow and support the e- education industry. A selection of these are shown in the table below.
| Project: Computer Literacy Programme: school teachers and principals, trained on keyboarding, word processing, basic troubleshooting and maintenance Technology; funded by the Government of The Gambia. • Contact: newgambia.gm |
| Project: Wider Net Project: setting up a small intranet comprising five work stations and a server • Organisation(s)/funding sources: University of Gambia |
| Project: iEARN Gambia: involves teachers in about 20 schools in collaborative project work • Organisation(s)/funding sources: Department of State Education • Contact: iearn.org |
| Project: Education Management Information System (EMIS): management of education |
| Project: Gambia-UNESCO ICT Fellowship Center: recognising ICTs in the service of persons with disabilities and centres, and the Department of State for Communication, Information and Technology • Contact: stockholmchallenge.se |
| Project: Peace Corps Computer Project: bringing computer equipment to Gambian Schools through donations • Contact: iicd.org |
| Project: Gambia HELP Computer Project: building computer labs and teaching a key group of students and staff at each school the skills necessary to keep the labs up and running. • Organisation(s)/funding sources: •Contact: gambiahelp.org |
| Project: |
| Computer Training in Sierra Leone and The Gambia: train-the-trainer programmes that includes office applications and Web design • Contact: universalgiving.org |
| Project: YMCA Computer Training Center: offering computer literacy classes, consultancy and customised IT training • Contact: http://www.ymca.gm/ |
Source: GIEPA