No fewer than 300 schoolgirls and 60 teachers in Osun State have been trained and equipped with technological skills at a technology summit organized by Matadors Leadership Institute in collaboration with US Consulate General, Lagos.
The summit, themed: “The Osun Girls Can Code” which was held at Adolak Event centre in Osogbo, the state capital, was also accompanied with quiz competition among secondary school girls in the state.
Speaking at the grand finale of the programme held on Monday, the founder of the institute, Adedayo Adeniyi explained that they trained 300 schoolgirls and 60 school teachers to expose them to information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and components that would enable them handle modern computing.
The motive of the programme was to, “ensure that these girls have access to what we don’t have access to. And that they help us drive the conversation of technology that we want to keep driving in Osun State.”
“Because we invested this because of the gap and we want to fill it with the people who we already equipped with the skills. If they are not equipped with the skills they cannot fill any gap.
“It is also better to invest in the younger generation than the older generation. Of course, it is going to be the marriage of both the old and the young but you stand to gain more by investing in the younger ones.
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“It has been a wonderful project and eye-opener for us going through Osun, training 300 school girls. It is also a revelation of where we are as a people. There were many of them that were not able to use a computer system until training happened.
“So, for us, it is to ensure that the future is secured. The future of education in the state is secured and of course, the conversation of development through ICT is secured.
“I told you that there were many of these children that were not able to use a computer but within five days of our training, it was amazing what they could do with the system. Some of us still have phones that we don’t know the functionality so well, but these kids in five days did some things that I was amazed.”
At the end of the competition, Our Lady & St Francis Catholic College (OSCCO) won the first position with the cash prize of N150,000, Oasis Royal Academy came second with N100,000 while Christaline Montessori Academy and Baptist Girls Grammar School shared the third position.
The institute has decided to increase prize money for the third position to N75,000 from N60,000 for the two schools.
Other selected schools that participated are Christ Apostolic Church Secondary School, Gbodofon; Crystal Academy; Divine Grace School, Ilesa; GOLF International School, Osogbo; Science High School, Ikirun; Fakunle Comprehensive High School, Osogbo; Shekinah College, Inisa; Baptist Girls High School, Osogbo; Laro Grammar School, Osogbo; among others.
He however appealed to governments at all levels to collaborate with such developmental projects.
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