Send message to Author

Paper short abstract:

In sub-Saharan Africa, 9 in 10 children lack electricity in schools. Ghana's ICT policy strives for equitable access, but rural-urban gaps persist in electricity and remote learning tools. Bridging this gap requires significant improvements in rural educational infrastructure.

Paper long abstract:

Efforts are being made to address the significant gap between rural and urban communities, to improve the socio-economic sustainability of rural areas. Approximately 660 million children attend primary schools worldwide, but unfortunately, a staggering 188 million lack access to electricity. It is concerning to note that nine out of ten children in sub-Saharan Africa, aged three to seventeen, attend schools without electricity. The rapid expansion of information and communication technology (ICT) has increased its significance in contemporary cultures. As a result, educational institutions in the Global South have been modifying their curricula and resources to bridge the technology gap between industrialized and developing countries. Within the framework of Ghana's ICT policy objectives, it is recognized that ICT is a crucial tool for education at all levels. The strategy aims to establish ICT standards for teaching and administration in both urban and rural schools, standardize ICT resources, and provide recommendations for integrating ICT tools into education across the board. This research analyses the technological gap between schools in rural and urban locations, using data from the World Bank, UNESCO, Ghana's Ministry of Education, UNESCO-UITS, and academic journals. The study reveals that 95.2% of families in urban areas have access to electricity, compared to 74% in rural areas. The report emphasizes the significance of enhancing educational infrastructure in rural areas to address the technology gap in teaching and learning, especially in integrating ICT into the curriculum.