• Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Donate
  • Login
Watchdog Uganda
Advertisement
  • Home
  • News
    • National
    • Politics
    • World News
    • Sports
      • Football
      • Motorsport
  • Business
    • Agriculture
    • Finance
    • RealEstate
    • Technology
  • Op-Ed
  • Entertainment
    • Lifestyle
    • Showbiz
    • Big Brother Naija Dairy
  • People
    • Entrepreneurs
    • Stars
    • Politicians
  • Special Report
    • Education
  • Travel
  • Video
  • Luganda
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • National
    • Politics
    • World News
    • Sports
      • Football
      • Motorsport
  • Business
    • Agriculture
    • Finance
    • RealEstate
    • Technology
  • Op-Ed
  • Entertainment
    • Lifestyle
    • Showbiz
    • Big Brother Naija Dairy
  • People
    • Entrepreneurs
    • Stars
    • Politicians
  • Special Report
    • Education
  • Travel
  • Video
  • Luganda
No Result
View All Result
Watchdog Uganda
No Result
View All Result

UCC delivers reliable internet to 100 schools

watchdog by watchdog
3 years ago
in National, News, Technology
6 1
ShareTweetSendShare

More students from rural areas can now access reliable Internet services thanks to the intervention of Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), through the Rural Communication Development Fund (RCDF).

This follows the Northern Uganda regional launch of the second phase of the school connectivity project under which academic institutions are supported with reliable internet services to improve the quality of education in rural schools.

Addressing a gathering of mostly school heads at the event in Gulu last week, Mr. Nyombi Thembo, the Director RCDF, said the project aims to empower students in rural areas through modern teaching methods such as e-learning, as well as ICT integration in teaching and research.

“We are launching the school connectivity project of the second phase, where we are connecting one hundred schools (100) to the Internet, delivering to them a dedicated Internet link of 5mbps,” he said.

The first phase, which saw 800 schools connected, only delivered a dedicated Internet link of 256kbps.

According to heads of schools we spoke to, the first phase yielded mixed results.

“After we stopped paying for bandwidth, most of the schools couldn’t afford to pay. So the project didn’t do as well as we wanted,” Nyombi admitted. He explained that this time round the project has been redesigned after learning from the first phase.

Nyombi added that schools are now able to pay for bandwidth because Internet costs have reduced by more than 10 times since the first phase was implemented. School heads and teachers have also been sensitized more about the need for ICT in education.

To ensure lasting impact, RCDF has designed a three-year exit strategy under which it plans to progressively drawdown its support from 100% to 70% to 50% of the total cost of bandwidth, as it prepares beneficiary schools to eventually absorb the total costs.

These changes, Nyombi said, will improve the sustainability of the project. Under this project, the government has so far connected 90 percent of secondary schools with computer laboratories and the Internet, and is moving to consider primary schools.

UCC currently works with Research and Education Network for Uganda (RENU) to deliver faster and more reliable internet connections, empower teachers through technology while improving the quality of teaching for learners.

“What if you are a rural school in Uganda and get 5mbps Internet connection and 40 computers? How will teaching and learning change,” asked Kalema Golooba, an ICT expert who spoke at the event. “This is the question head teachers from Northern Uganda whose schools have been selected to get high speed internet by UCC are grappling with.”

Describing it as a great opportunity for schools in Uganda, Golooba added: “There is work to do in capacitating teachers, sensitizing leaders and generating high quality digital content to realize the dream – technology fused into all the operations of schools, so deeply integrated that it becomes invisible.”

The main goal of the one-day event was to sensitise head teachers and heads of ICT departments in the beneficiary schools to understand their role in the success of the project.

Sister Grace Achiro, the head teacher Ediofe Girls SS in Arua District, a school that boasts of 61 working computers all obtained through UCC assistance, was declared the best in ensuring project sustainability.

“That time (2012) we had power problems but now we are able to use the computers almost every day,” said Sr. Achiro whose school has 800 students.

Mandated to promote the development of communications infrastructure in the country, among other roles, UCC has over the years worked through the RCDF to support schools in the rural areas to leverage ICTs in the learning process.

Following last week’s Northern Uganda regional launch, the second phase of the school connectivity project was launched in Mbale on Wednesday, July 24, 2019. The Western Uganda launch will take place in Mbarara on August 31, 2019, and lastly Kampala on September 8, 2019.


Do you have a story in your community or an opinion to share with us: Email us at editorial@watchdoguganda.com

Share1Tweet1SendShare

Related Posts

Bobi Wine and Mao
News

Tough times for DP as more of its members defect to NUP

26th June 2022 at 18:02
kungu Al-Mahadi Adam
News

KUNGU AL-MAHADI ADAM : Museveni’s heroic welcome in Kigali brushes-off Kagame’s accusations against Uganda

26th June 2022 at 16:59
Uganda Airlines aircraft at Entebbe Int. Airport; Online Photo
Business

Do you have the necessary requirements? Lucrative job opportunity up for grabs at Uganda Airlines 

26th June 2022 at 14:40
Next Post

Police seeks funding to address salary disparity

Follow us on Facebook

Trending Posts

  • The late Samuel Majwega

    MK Publishers Proprietor Majwega dies from USA where he had gone to attend daughter’s graduation ceremony

    33 shares
    Share 13 Tweet 8
  • Enkolagana yaffe ne People Power ekomye awo, NUP ya Kibalama etongozza offiisi empya e Lubaga

    33 shares
    Share 13 Tweet 8
  • Multiple-organ failure! 14 year old student allegedly vaccinated against Covid-19 fighting for dear life at Kiruddu Hospital

    316 shares
    Share 126 Tweet 79
  • Businessman Sudhir puts his magnificent One-10 Apartments up for sale

    24 shares
    Share 10 Tweet 6
  • Days after graduating with a fake degree, Pastor Bugingo consoles himself with brand new monster ride

    44 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 11

Follow us on Twitter

Facebook Twitter

Contact Information

Watchdog Uganda is a portal for solution journalism, trending news plus cutting edge commentaries in the fields of politics, security, business, tourism, entertainment, technology, agriculture, climate change, environment, public health et al. We also give preference to Ugandan community news and topical discussions. The portal also publishes community news and topical discussions.

Plot 23, Yusuf Lule Road
PO Box 7661 Kampala, Uganda
Office Line: +256 777 286 815
Email: editorial@watchdoguganda.com
To Advertise:Click here

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on Facebook

© 2022 Watchdog Uganda

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • National
    • Politics
    • World News
    • Sports
      • Football
      • Motorsport
  • Business
    • Agriculture
    • Finance
    • RealEstate
    • Technology
  • Op-Ed
  • Entertainment
    • Lifestyle
    • Showbiz
    • Big Brother Naija Dairy
  • People
    • Entrepreneurs
    • Stars
    • Politicians
  • Special Report
    • Education
  • Travel
  • Video
  • Luganda

© 2022 Watchdog Uganda

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
Posting....