Digital economy is key in turning around every sector

Sharon Chikowore

THE Government is committed to capacitating schools with computers as it focuses on
moving away from analogue to digital.
The Zimbabwean Master Plan, which focuses on smart everything is the reason why the
Ministry of ICT is ensuring that each and every school has an ICT laboratory.
Speaking at Chinhoyi High School, last week where an ICT laboratory was being
commissioned, the Minister of Information Communication Technology, Postal and Courier
Services, Dr Jenfan Muswere, said as the country journeys to a smart nation, there was need
for pupils to learn and know digital technology and transform the education sector so that the
country had a digitally connected society by 2030.
“The commission that you witnessed here at Chinhoyi High is the testimony to Government’s
commitment as we journey towards transforming the entire education sector as we identify
the digital economy as one of the key priorities that is going to turn around every sector of
this economy.
“The ICT labs will give pupils, learner’s capacity to do researches to make decisions, to
choose careers, to analyse information and to give learners the opportunity to access critical
information. It will give learners access to examine various segments of data so that we can
then be able to know how to develop agriculture, to develop manufacturing industries, to
develop, manufacture aeroplanes and various goods and services, which we need as we
develop our country in order to ensure that we achieve an upper middle income society which
is digitally connected by the year 2030,” said Dr Muswere.
He went on to say that these ICT labs would help the young generation to learn, generate,
develop and produce different types of software, which will help uplift the face of the country
in all sectors of the economy, moving along with the digital era.
“Everything else is anchored around the Zimbabwean Master Plan, which recognises the
importance of infrastructure, which recognises the importance of human capital development,
where the focus is on primary and secondary schools and tertiary institutions so that we move
away from the analogue system, we move away from the manual systems to the digital
systems because the smart Zimbabwe Master Plan also recognises the importance of critical
pillars, which will ensure that we achieve a smart nation, smart education, which is mainly
the reason why we have been establishing these ICT labs across the country,” he said.
Mashonaland West Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Mary Mliswa
Chikoka, was happy that the Minister of ICT acted fast on ensuring that the school got the
computers since President Munangagwa had promised the school 20 computers when he
came for CUT graduation ceremony in September. She thanked the Government for the ICT
labs in the province.

Trelawney Primary, Tafira Secondary and Musengezi High also received the computers from
the Government.