NASA Scientist Dr Trebi-Ollenu Addresses Ghana Academy of Sciences on the Importance of Space Technology

Ghana's Dr Ashitey Trebi-Ollennu from NASA-JPL will be presenting a lecture at the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences on the topic “Space Technology Unleashing A Wave of Disruptive New Technologies – To Post-Scarcity Economy”. Going by this title, the lecture promises to unveil deep insights that would be relevant to young people, businesses and policy makers.

The lecture will focus on current and future trends in information technology, explain the exponential growth in technology and present ways that the youth of Ghana can participate in this life-changing disruptive technologies — self-driving cars, genetic editing and artificial intelligence.

Dr Trebi-Ollenu would also address the difficult challenges facing governments today. Special emphasis would be placed on how to enable and channel the 'transformative forces of technological innovation' to maximize the benefits to current and future generations. Suggestions would be made as to how governments can reform institutional structures to be a lot more open to self-disruption as relative power shifts from centralized forces to the unprecedented empowerment of individuals due to the exponential growth of information enabled technologies.

It is refreshing that Dr Trebi-Ollenu is championing this critical discourse at this particular point in time. Advances in modern technology is gradually lowering barriers to entry in various spheres of science and technology research and innovation. This empowers individuals, small organisations, and communities to be able to access tools to be able to solve everyday problems and create businesses, resulting in significant socio-economic gains across board. 

Want to Shape the Future? Take the Global Shapers Annual Survey 2016

Challenges faced by young people across the world are both local and global in nature. In my country, Ghana, some of the key issues consistently raised through discussions on online and offline youth platforms such as BarCamp include unemployment, corruption, and frequent power cuts (dubbed ‘dumsor’ in local parlance). Less obvious but equally pressing problems include climate change, gender inequality, and limited access to higher education. These challenges are often interlinked and have far-reaching impacts. Therefore, they need to be properly analysed to pave way for the design of appropriate solutions to address them. The youth voice cannot be missing in the discourse as they represent a significant proportion of global population and offer new ideas and visions on the way forward.

For example, frequent power cuts have been frustrating citizens and hampering national development in Ghana for the better part of the last decade-and-half. Everyone has been affected in one way or the other - from intrepid students working hard on school assignments in the evenings to start-up founders or corporate bosses looking to maximise industrial productivity. For young people, this situation has consequences for number of new jobs created in a given period. Dumsor has become a noxious scourge on national life, and many have spoken strongly on government’s inability to solve the problem on civic platforms. Interestingly, it is not just a Ghanaian problem but a regional one. Many countries throughout Africa, including South Africa and Nigeria, face frequent power cuts unlike countries of the global North. 

The Global Shapers Community, in ensuring that young people contribute to shaping the world, is collecting youth voices through its second Annual Survey. The survey gives a global overview of young people’s perspectives on the state of the world, and how they would like to contribute to improving it. It is open to all young people between 18 and 35 years everywhere in the world. By taking this survey, you would be helping to compose a more accurate picture of priority issues for young people at global, regional, and national levels. Global Shapers would be creating and sharing a report based on the survey to government, business, and third sector leaders the world over. Global youth surveys like the Global Shapers Survey could be complemented by local studies looking at specific contextual issues into more detail. 

Global and local pictures of the youth experience will go a long way to inform relevant interventions to deliver results for youth. This would require cross-sector collaborations. A multi-faceted approach, looking at empowering young researchers and innovators with relevant skills in renewable energy for example, could help untangle the challenges in educational opportunities, energy access, and job security earlier outlined. However, any specific programme developed would rely on insights from sources such as the Global Shapers Annual Survey. By sparing 10 to 15 minutes of your time to take the Global Shapers Annual Survey 2016, you would be contributing to promoting the welfare of young people in your community, country, region, and the world at large. Join me in this important journey of change.

NEF Ambassadors Share on Expectations and Experiences - #NEF2016

The Next Einstein Forum, hosted by Senegal in Dakar, brought together various stakeholders including presidents, scientists,technologists, policymakers, entrepreneurs and activists to deliberate on the future of African science and how it can be applied to benefit society. During the global gathering held from 8th to 10th March, some NEF ambassadors took time to share on their expectations and experiences. Find out more in the video below.

Also, fellow ambassador Yassine Harzallah from Tunisia made a brilliant video that captured how the ambassadors interacted with the event. His video evoked the sense of friendship, cooperation, happiness and positivity that pervaded the NEF ambience. 

We look forward to support the work of NEF in order to raise the profile of African science and encourage more young Africans to enter into the sciences. We are all keen to work with the fellows, volunteers, and mentors within the NEF network, as well as colleagues in our own countries and all over the world, to realise the above objectives.

Projecting Ho and Impacting Generations Through Global Shapers Hub

The Ho Hub of the World Economic Forum's Global Shapers community has been busy since its inception, this January, with various projects to impact the Volta Region of Ghana. Global Shapers are passionate young people from diverse backgrounds who work together in geographical hubs to make positive contributions to their communities. 

The unique Ho hub is the third one to be set up in Ghana, and I am glad to be a member. Under the leadership of Tsonam Akpeloo, we collaborate to execute projects that truly benefit Ho and its environs.

Global Shapers Ho Hub members interacting with market women at Ahoe market during the 'miatowo' project

Below is a round-up of key activities carried out across heath, education, and business to date. 

• The Water Purification Project addressed low access to clean water in a deprived school by providing a water purifier and training on its use
• One Shoe Per Child provided basic school pupils with shoes to enable them travel comfortably and safely to school
• Woekpor Digital Literacy Initiative introduced selected pupils and teachers to digital literacy and showcased use cases of common technologies for learning
• Miatowo empowered local female traders with basic financial literacy and business generation skills to increase their revenue generation activities
• Deviotoe complemented One Shoe per Child by providing books to pupils in the same school, with a goal to improving reading skills. 

Ho students learning to analyze topics through concept maps. What is digital literacy? #woekpor #digitallyconnected pic.twitter.com/Bud7yjPwzC

— Gameli Adzaho (@gamelmag) June 6, 2015

These projects tackled key barriers to well-being at individual and communal levels. They are not ends in themselves. Rather, they represent starting points through which Global Shapers, and other groups of determined changemakers, can contribute to making small or big differences to everyday life in Ho. By being involved in the worldwide Global Shapers community, we stand to benefit from the experiences and insights of international colleagues, while sharing local best practices.

Keep up with Global Shapers Ho hub's activities through the following channels:

Global Shapers Ho page at globalshapers.org

Global Shapers Ho on Facebook

Global Shapers Ho on Twitter

Celebrating the Heroes of Youth Entrepreneurship at BarCamp Kumasi 2014 #bcksi

If you're around Kumasi this weekend, please join GhanaThink and its partners for the fifth BarCamp Kumasi at KNUST. Find more details and info on how to register on the poster below.

BarCamp Kumasi 2014 is the 38th barcamp to be held in Ghana #bcksi

Want to know more? Read this blog post by MIghTy African. 

Putting Education to Work: The Role of ICT in Skills Development

The Ghana launch of the tenth UNESCO Education for All Global Monitoring Report was held at the British Council, Accra, last Wednesday 14th November. It was put together by the Accra office of UNESCO in collaboration with DFID, World Bank, Ministry of Education and the GhanaThink Foundation. The report's theme, "Youth and Skills: Putting Education to Work", is both interesting and very relevant to the times. 

Hiplife star and CEO of Lynx Entertaiment, Richie in a musical performance

A presentation by Prof Kwame Akyeampong, one of the report's authors, brought to the fore many failings of Ghana's educational system including inability of some basic school graduates to read, inaccessibility of education to the poorest, continuous low-enrollment of girls, late entry of pupils into education and lack of second-chance opportunities for school dropouts.While we thrive fairly well compared to most African countries, we're way off the mark considering our lofty developmental aspirations.

Prof Akyeampong: Investing in education and skills is good business. Every dollar invested gives ten-fold reward.

As part of the programme, six tables were set up to discuss different topics connected to the report. These were ICT and technology, The role of the private sector, An education for the world of work, Informal education and out-of-school children, Education/skills development for rural/disadvantaged women and Entrepreneurship. Each session had an expert and two or more youth leaders to coordinate  deliberations.

During the ICT and Technology session, a clear distinction was made between ICT as a school subject and ICT as a teaching and learning tool. It was noted that technology’s usefulness should not end after ICT classes but must permeate every aspect of the school curriculum.

The following challenges were noted as barriers to adoption of ICT in Education: 

• Lack of basic infrastructure, including electricity and Internet 
• Expensive equipment eg computers 
• Reluctance of older teachers to embrace ICTs 
• Distraction suffered by students (as they abuse the use of technology)

 To overcome the challenges, some proposals were made: 

• Put more attention on mobiles due to their ubiquity
• Create synergies as different people on the table were involved in one project on the other  
• Be more encouraging to people’s efforts. Part of OLPC’s challenges stems from lack of support  
• Enforce the curriculum 
• Set up rules/policy to moderate usage of technology by students

 We don’t have to try to get everything right from go since critical mass creates demand (for the resources) hence supply (by government or private sector) comes in. 

Participants shared their contacts so as to continue with the discussions and collaborate on projects they’re working on.The following projects and resources were mentioned:

•  DreamOval ICT training workshops (iTeach 2012)
• Mobile Learning Project for Ghanaianstudents/teachers
• Ghana Educators Network
• Global Lab Group
• Passco Africa
• British Council Digital Hubs
• Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC).

Social Media Awards for Ghana's Online Community

BloggingGhana is introducing another first into Ghana's online world, the first ever Blog and Social Media Award! The event slated for March 2013 is generating buzz in the local web ecosystem, as this is the first time bloggers, vloggers, tweeps and facebookers will be officially recognised. Find the full press release below.

“BLOG And Social Media Awards 2013!”

Ghana’s 1st Blogging And Social Media Awards Night

We’ve all fantasized about being world-popular writers; had long conversations with ourselves in the shower; wowed the lawyer in us with the sheer wit of our arguments in the isolation of our bedrooms; calmed the storms and tsunamis of the world with Dalai Lama and Paulo Coelho. We’ve even changed policies and agenda with our very own mass followings, photoblogs, and online networks. In reality, this might not be the case, but in the world of the blogger, tweep, facebooker, everything is possible.

It’s a closed world, personal and sometimes defiant, but it has influenced, shaped, and motivated many. And here at BloggingGhana, we firmly believe it’s about time we appreciate, honour, and award some of the personalities behind the blogs, tweets, and pages that have so motivated, informed, and affected many of us.

So join us, in March 2013, to show special honour to our silent, unknown, sometimes faceless cyber and social media motivators. Yes, you, me, and she/him, at the first-ever in Ghana “Blog & Social Media Awards 2013”. If you are a blogger, tweep, facebooker, and you believe you have touched the world – really, it’s okay if you/person are not so up there, you should still make your nomination – locate yourself in the following categories:

• Best Technology Blog
• Best Business & Commerce Blog
• Best Citizen Journalism Blog
• Best Creative, Literary Short Stories, Poetry Blog
• Best Showbiz and Entertainment Blog
• Best Lifestyle Blog
• Best Activist Blog
• Best Photo Blog
• Best Organisational Blog
• Best Blog
  

Other Social Media Categories

• Personality with Best Social Media Presence
• Organisation with Best Social Media Presence
• Best Original Content
  

Nomination Process
BloggingGhana will open up Nominations for the above listed categories in November 2012 after which an Academy and the Public will vote for the best in each category. Voting will close in February 2013 and presentation of awards will be at the BlogCamp Ghana 2013 event scheduled for March 2013.

Visit http://blogcampghana.com/social-media-awards/ then follow @BloggingGhana on Twitter, and stay locked on for updates on “the road to Blog & Social Media Awards! 2013”. There will be daily riddles, blog quotes, personality bloggers of the week, ‘Vim Series’, and other events alongside the nomination period activities. Most importantly, there might be an award here with your name on it!

ABOUT
This event is brought to you by BloGH – BloggingGhana, Ghana’s biggest organization of bloggers and social media enthusiasts. BloggingGhana (BloGh) is a group of bloggers and social media users, writing out of Ghana or the Ghanaian experience. It is also an aggregator website that collects the latest posts and tweets from our members. Since June 2011 we are a registered non-profit organization with a executive council working towards the following objectives:

1. Serving as a forum for bloggers in Ghana to network and exchange ideas
2. Building capacity among bloggers in Ghana
3. Accessing new audiences for our blogs through a mutual website (aggregator) and other activities
4. Promoting citizen journalism in Ghana
5. Educating the general public in Ghana on the opportunities of social media
   

The idea of starting BloGh came out of a meet-up of bloggers on 24 July 2008.  To that first meeting, organized by bloggers Sandra Crabbe and Kajsa Hallberg Adu, eight bloggers were invited. We wrote: “we would like to bring the Ghanaian blog community together in real life! There is so much to say…about our green homeland, if Blogger is better than  WordPress, if labels are useful, how best to boost and count traffic,  what Internet cafés are fast, and of course how blogging changes your life…”

END

Media Contact:
Naa Adaku (Golda) Addo
Blog & Social Media Awards Lead – BloGH
+233(0)244828322
@GHANAmomoni
goldaaddo@gmail.com

Google Hangout Discussion on IEA Presidential Encounters

Yesterday, I took part in a Google plus hangout organised by Ghana Decides to discuss submissions from presidential candidates of various political parties in the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) presidential encounters series. I joined fellow Ghanaians from different locations throughout the world to discuss what we made of the submissions of the leaders of Convention People's Party (CPP), People's National Convention (PNC) and New Patriotic Party (NPP) as Ghana prepares for elections in December. The hangout was broadcast live on the Ghana Decides YouTube Channel. You can follow the discussion for yourself through this video:

Various opinions were shared, but what was clear is that people expect the IEA encounters to have little impact on the outcome of the polls (due to a perceived language barrier as the discourses were undertaken in English and that most people already made up their minds on who to vote for). However, it was agreed that the platform created by IEA has become an important hallmark of our democracy. It's relevance lies in the fact that whoever wins power will be held accountable for the pronouncements made to the people captured live on televison, radio and on the Internet. Another thing that was clear was the seeming distrust of political authority and their willingness to really bring change to the country. 

All in all it was an interesting discussion and another example of the use of social media as a tool for civic engagement in our part of the world. I look forward to another opportunity in the future to talk, not only about politics, but also about other topics I'm interested in. What do you think about the points made during the discussion? What were your impressions about the IEA Evening Encounters? What do you think are the main issues that concern the youth as far as democracy in Ghana/Africa is concerned? It'd be good to know!

Ghanaian Team Emerges Tops in Google Online Marketing Challenge

CLAK Impressions. Ghana's digital media whizz kids.

CLAK impressions, from the Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology, have emerged as one of the best teams worldwide in this year's Google Online Marketing Challenge. In the annual student online marketing competition that tests the ability of competitors to maximise a given amount of Google Adwords advertising budget, Kwasi Owusu Achiaw, Lenny Wosornu, Seth Adinkra, Charles Mensah and Maria Meir (lecturer) have chalked the following accolades based on their work for the Golden Baobab Foundation: 

• 1st in Ghana
• 1st in Africa
• 2nd in Africa-Middle East Region
• Global Finalist (Top 20 team)

CLAK Impressions with Golden Baobab team

Their exploit puts them in the running for a Social Impact Award, which will potentially send Golden Baobab to the bank laughing with between $5000 to $15000. News in town is that they achieved more than 100% success rate on their campaigns for Golden Baobab. This is another refreshing news, reinforcing the role of various youth-led initiatives in Africa's digital revolution. Well done, CLAK Impressions!

Press Release: Ghana Decides on the Death of President Mills

We are shocked and saddened by the death of His Excellency President John Evans Atta Mills. The announcement of his death was nothing less of a surprise and a blow to a nation that is continually trying to surmount immense developmental challenges. President Mills led Ghana on a path that he best judged as one that could propel the country he loved forward. He did his bit, but now he is gone.

 We have been overwhelmed with Ghana’s heartfelt response to the death of President Mills. The words fine academic, religious, hardworking and peace-loving are most often used to describe him. Some mention humility and we should not mistake that for timidity. President Mills brought the “GOOD MAN” syndrome to Ghana’s politics.

So on the event of his death; we are shaken, here at Ghana Decides. Ghana’s future is opened up again and we are thinking of the shape it will take. We cannot believe that the man we had various expectations about had eluded all of us and made it to “behind the seas where no one has seen.” That alone is heavy for us all and we are uncertain what next to do with regards to our plans for the sitting Government. President Mills has changed everything once again – and for the last time.

Consequently, the quick turnaround the nation has made, in terms of transition by swearing in Vice President John Dramani Mahama as President, is impeccable. We, at Ghana Decides, are not surprised as we have found in our interactions both online and offline with Ghanaians across the country, that people are committed to ensuring that peace and stability is maintained. Nonetheless, the peaceful and unified transition should be noted and celebrated. Ghana continues to hold the peace and uphold its constitution.

We therefore mourn the man we all loved, castigated, laughed with and wished well. If we ever forget how he lived, we would do well to play one audio clip from his addresses to Parliament and turn around with a “gargantuan” smile and say: There was the man who loved this country more than himself.

BloggingGhana Organises First Ghana BlogCamp

BloggingGhana, Ghana's biggest group of bloggers and social media enthusiasts presents a day of workshops and networking dubbed BlogCamp Ghana 2012. I will encourage everyone who can to attend this event as I can testify to how social media has changed my worldview and improved my life. BlogCamp 2012 indeed gives voice to the new generation!

Exchange of ideas during January 2012 meeting

BlogCamp seeks to educate and inform attendees on the benefits of social media channels such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google+ and blogs. Further, BlogCamp 2012 will demonstrate how the youth can leverage the power of social media for positive social change, good governance, accountability, technology, business and education; this will ensure that there is more online content from Africa. BlogCamp 2012 will also be used to launch Ghana’s first Social Media Awards scheme, aimed at rewarding various activists and contributors to the growth of social media in Ghana. Visit the BlogCamp Agenda page for further details.

BlogCamp 2012 has been made possible through the efforts of the BloggingGhana Community and the kind support of our partners: Vodafone, Google, United States Embassy, Nandimobile, Web4Africa, Citi 97.3 Fm, Mawuli Sikanku Photography and REDD Kat Pictures.

Enter your details into the BlogCamp 2012 registration page to be part of this wonderful programme. For more information, visit the BlogCamp Ghana website or connect with BloggingGhana through Twitter, Facebook or Google +. We will be posting with the hash tags #BlogCamp12 and #BloggingGhana. Send your inquiries and we will get back to you immediately. Be part of BlogCamp 2012, Voice of a New Generation!

BarCamp Ghana 2011: Getting Ahead Through Partnerships and Collaboration

The "mother" of all BarCamps in Ghana will be taking place live at the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT this Saturday. Join us in person or via Twitter and Facebook!

After Barcamps in Kumasi, Cape Coast, Tamale and Ho, the movement is in Accra this Saturday for Barcamp Ghana. Barcamp Ghana 2011 will take place on December 17, 2011 at the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT. The theme is “Establishing Partnerships to transform dreams into action-based projects: Lessons from Mentors”. This Barcamp will concentrate on sharing, inspiring and creating stories about building partnership with attendant mentorship to create successful Ghanaian projects and businesses. This will be the 11th Barcamp in Ghana, back to the venue where it all started in December 2008.

BarCamp Ghana 2011 will feature a speed mentoring session with mentors like Bernard Avle, Kofi Akpabli, Albert Ocran, Sheila Bartels-Sam, Lionel Dosoo, Leila Djansi, Carl Ashie, Kofi Dadzie, Maximus Ametorgoh, Alex Adjei-Bram, Nana Awere Damoah, Sefakor Gbewonyo, Alfred Cran-Mensah, amongst others.

As always, there will be many breakout sessions organized by you, valuable networking and a celebration of Ghanaian ingenuity and innovation. Register/RSVP today at the BarCamp Ghana eventbrite website. If you are interested in organizing a breakout session, email us at info@barcampghana.org, especially if you have special needs. 

BarCamp Ghana 2011 is sponsored by the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, Mobile Web Ghana, GhanaThink Foundation, Fienipa Group, Spot One Global, and Nandimobile. Our media partners are ModernGhana.com, Citi 97.3 FM, and Radio Univers. BarCamp Ghana -www.barcampghana.org – info at barcampghana.org

Kenya Hosts Sixth Internet Governance Forum

Thought leaders in the Internet Governance (IG) community will converge in Nairobi, Kenya from 27th September to 1st October to deliberate on the present and future of the Internet. Dubbed Internet Governance Forum (IGF), the meeting is convened by the United Nations and will be held at their offices in Gigiri.

The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is an annual event; it is a multi-stakeholder platform for discussions into all aspects of the Internet Governance debate. Internet Governance itself, simply, is the coming together of different interest parties to figure out how the Internet should operate and what laws or principles should be applied in its use. IGF brings together all key actors in the Internet space: governments, the technical community, academics, civil society and corporate organisations, on an equal basis. IGF was birthed through the World Summit for Information Society (WSIS) that was held in Tunis in 2005. Considering that the Internet has become a useful tool in all aspects of human endeavour and that there are over 1.5 billion of us using the global platform, there is no doubt that the IG debate is crucial. IGF has become so important that its organisation has been diffused to regional and national levels. At the first Ghana IGF, I took part in the discussion on Youth and Internet Governance Issues.

The main theme for IGF 2011 is "Internet as a catalyst for change: access, development, freedoms and innovation". It has further been broken down into the following sub-themes:

• IG4D / Internet governance for development (IG4D) [also a cross cutting theme]
• Emerging Issues
• Managing critical Internet resources
• Security, openness and privacy
• Access and diversity
• Taking stock and the way forward 

Various workshops, coordinated by different stakeholders, have been organised to raise discussion points under each sub-theme. For example, under security, openness and privancy, one of the workshops has been titled "Protecting the Most Vulnerable Users in Society: The Roles of Different Actors in Helping the New User Survive in an On-Line World", and under IG4D, we have "Can Digital Citizenship Scale into the Emerging and Developing Countries Effectivly? Should It?".  Also, the dynamic coalitions would be having their own sessions to explore issues pertinent to their causes.

If you want to take part in the IGF but you can't make it to Nairobi, don't worry. You can make your voice heard by participating remotely. You can also share your views on Twitter (#IGF) and Facebook. To learn more about Internet Governance, you can join the Diplo community. See you in Nairobi!

[Press Release]: Celebrating Software Freedom Day 2011 in Ghana!

The Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT (AITI-KACE) in collaboration with the Linux User Group, Accra(LUGA) will again be hosting a special event on Saturday, September 17^th under the theme “Open Source a viable option for achieving MDGs”. The venue for this year's celebrations is the AITI-KACE premises and the time is 9:00 – 16:00. This is the biggest international celebration and outreach event for Software Freedom globally involving 500 volunteer groups all around the world.

In an increasingly digital age, more and more of our everyday experiences depend upon software. Software influences how we interact with each other, enjoy different media, get paid, and even navigate our roads. Software underpins our very way of life, our basic freedoms such as freedom of association, freedom of thought, freedom of choice and much more, yet many people do not realize the importance and influence of software and other technologies on their lives. What is even much more important is that open source is proven to be a viable technology option capable to aid achieving the Millennium Development Goals(MDG's).

Software Freedom Day (SFD) is a worldwide celebration of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). Over 500 volunteer groups in over 120 countries all around the world are celebrating the sixth SFD this year on September 17. SFD is an annual grass roots effort to educate the public on the virtues of Free/Open Source Software (FOSS) and also to encourage its use. The goal in this celebration is to educate the worldwide public about the benefits of using high quality FOSS in education, in government, at home, and in business - in short, everywhere!

The AITI-KACE and its partners have been celebrating Software Freedom Day for a number of years and with support from the general public and the IT Community. We would like those that have attended or are attending for the first time to bring a friend along. Come and see demonstrations of open source software to suit just about every usage that you might think of. Take home some ideas, and CDs/DVDs full of software that you can use straight away.

People in Ashanti Region of Ghana can also join the Ashanti Linux User Group to celebrate the day at the University of Education, Kumasi Campus, Tanoso.

AITI-KACE is located near Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ), adjacent to the Council of State Building on 2nd Avenue, Ridge, Accra. Contacts : Fred Yeboah - Tel 0302 679542-4 or e-mail: fredericky(at)aiti-kace.com.gh