TCRA propels digital skills initiatives

To prepare digital professionals for various challenges, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) has launched a strategy to strengthen social, economic, and digital development.
TCRA Director General Dr Jabiri Bakari

ARUSHA: IN efforts to ensure Tanzania prepares digital professionals with a strong foundation to address challenges and provide solutions for various social, economic and digital developmental activities, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) has launched a robust strategy to achieve the goal.

One of the key strategies is the initiation for the establishment of digital clubs for pupils and students right away from nursery to primary, colleges up to university levels.

Speaking recently on International Girls in ICT Day in Arusha, TCRA Director General Dr Jabir Bakari underscored the need for establishing digital clubs in educational centres, saying the move was of multiple benefits for the country.

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He said digital clubs are essential tools for bringing together pupils, students and scholars to discuss and exchange experiences in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and ICT subjects, leading to solutions that mitigate various social economic challenges of the communities from different walks of life.

Dr Bakari appealed to young innovators to make the most beneficial use of free valuable resources of frequency spectrum, numbering, postcode and domain names provided by TCRA free of charge to innovators for testing their incubate projects that will help to propel Tanzania into the digital and blue economies.

Also read: Public service goes digital

Various beneficiaries of these clubs, including primary school students from Unguja such as Ibtisam Khalfan Abdallah (Turkish Maarif School), Sarinah Salmin Sharif (Laureate School), Zuhra Said Salum (Salim Turky School) and Balqis Salum Khamis (Bububu School), have developed a system to purchase electricity and directly bill LUKU meters, removing inconveniences among service users.

This technology enables the user to buy Luku Units and top up the Luku Metre directly from the very mobile phone.

They encouraged their peers to take full advantage of this opportunity to join digital clubs so as to enable them to come up with various methods to drive the nation digitally, as the current economy is driven by digital technology revolutions.

Other primary school students from Pemba, including Hidaya Mohamed, Ahlam Ali (Michakaini A), Kauthar Mohamed (Al Kh