Sierra Leone's Ministers of Education Market President Bio's Human Capital Development Drive in India
The Minister of Technical and Higher Education - Dr. Ramatulai Wurie and the Deputy Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education - Mrs. Emily Gogra attended the India Summit on Education Knowledge Exchange, organized by the World Bank in the Indian Capital City - New Delhi.
The theme for the summit was "Harnessing Technology to Improve Learning and Service Delivery", and delegates from over 20 countries exchanged ideas on technology-driven practices for enhancing management information systems, student learning, and teacher development.
It was anticipated that the Technology Knowledge Exchange Summit will unite Ministers, senior government officials, private sector executives, representatives from civil society organizations, and the World Bank.
Being part of a Pannel Discussion with counterpart from Ghana, Cameroon and Benin on Comprehensive Tech-enabling Systems for Skills Development, Sierra Leonea's Minister of Technical and Higher Education commented on the perspectives of tech experts on the need to blur the distinction between higher education and post-secondary technical and vocational education.
Minister Wurie stated that the multiple use of facilities can be a strategic approach to address the challenges of limited resources and underutilization of educational infrastructure in Sierra Leone.
The Minister informed her audience of the vision of the President - H.E. Julius Maada Bio for a more employable and technically educated citizenry. She illustrated how the Government technical institutes becoming community colleges affiliated with a university will help to change the despising perception of people on Technical and Vocational Education. The Minister added that having technical institutions affiliated with universities will enable multiple use of existing resources.
Minister Wurie further revealed that the industrial placements of technical institutions within private companies will help to produce skilled personnel with hands on training on the job. She stated that this could increase the chances students getting employment just after schooling through technical institutions.
The Minister also spoke about the establishment of centers of excellence at regional level which focuses on sectors that align with national and socio-economic development agenda. She also spoke about the current move of her Ministry in Sierra Leone to open a partnership with the Ministry of Communications Technology and Innovation to develop technological solutions and foster innovation and digitalization, which will enable young people in Sierra Leone to acquire 21st century skills to compete on the global space.