Last week, some eight African countries including Ethiopia have been selected to be the centers of digital transformation in the continent.
The centers will be geared up towards providing world-class training and certification in the continent. This will be instrumental in creating a competitive and competent digital workforce, it was learnt.
The centers will be set up by the Ministry of Innovation and Technology in collaboration with the International Telecommunication Union and will include universities, science cafes and youth centers.
In connection with this endeavor, State Minister of Innovation and Technology, Huria Ali said the development of basic, medium and high level digital skills for citizens will contribute significantly to economic and social development.
She said special attention should be paid to women, rural communities and people with disabilities, narrowing the digital skills gap and ensuring their access to the digital world.
Annie Rachel, Head of the International Telecommunication Union’s Africa Regional Office said the Telecom Union supports the activities of digital transformation centers in Ethiopia and Africa in general.
Ethiopia has been selected as one of the eight African countries to become the center of digital transformation in the region and deliberations have been held with the International Telecommunication Union and several stakeholders on how to set up the centers.
While presenting its next year plan, the Ministry of Finance for its part said it will focus on job creation and skills for youths. To this end, the digital transformation process will help to create more jobs and skill development training.
The Minister of Finance, Ahmed Shede said the government will focus on job creation and skills development in an effort to achieve economic growth.
Furthermore, he said the government will fully support the Ethiopian Hotel and Tourism Training Institute (EOTC) in identifying and providing the necessary inputs to ensure that Ethiopians who are legally employed in the Middle East get back to their home country to be provided with the basic knowledge of language, food preparation and housekeeping.
The Technical and Vocational Training and Tourism Training Institute, the Ministry of Works and Skills, and its affiliated institutions, have submitted a 2015 budget plan in line with this.
In the next budget year, the Ministry of Revenue and the Ethiopian Customs Authority (ERCA) said that the budget deficit of the regular and capital budgets is higher than the required amount. The minister added that the joint purchase with other institutions will be rewarded.
The 21st century has provided favorable conditions for the emergence of increasingly mobile, connected and informed individuals who have ever increasing expectations of governments and public services. The new digital context allows governments to promote the development of a networked society and leverage digital technologies to improve organizational arrangements and public sector intelligence.
This can support higher productivity, improve policy making and enhance service design and delivery. The strategic use of new technologies allows for greater public sector performance while creating more inclusive government operations and processes. This may lead to more inclusive outcomes and help maintain trust in public institutions, according to the literatures in the sector.
Digital government implies an important paradigm shift in how the use of technologies in the public sector is conceived and implemented. Earlier on in the e-Government movement, the use of ICT focused on improving the efficiency of specific operations and areas of work.
However, countries have since realized that, with the rapid progress of digital, mobile and cloud technologies, this approach fails to take advantage of the full potential of digital technologies. The new digital paradigm recognizes the opportunity offered by new technologies to radically transform back-office operations in order to: improve public sector agility, enhance data management, and create more open and innovative societies that can drive social inclusiveness, and improve government accountability and effectiveness.
All of these factors contribute to long-term inclusive and sustainable development. In a context of rapidly changing social interactions and social dynamics, governments should be rethinking their role, scope of action and ways of working. Digital technologies should be seen as a crucial enabler of a networked society, and be embedded in public sector reform agendas as governments build new ways of interacting with citizens, businesses and other service users.
BY HAFTU GEBREZGABIHER
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 13 MAY 2022
