The Communications Minister, Samuel Nartey George, says schools of the top 10 girls who excelled in the “Girls in ICT” programme in the Volta Region will receive modern, well-equipped ICT laboratories before the end of the year.

According to the Minister, funding for the project has been approved, paving the way for the establishment of the laboratories in the respective schools of the selected girls.

He said the initiative was aimed at providing girls who participated in the Girls in ICT programme with the necessary infrastructure to enhance their digital skills and encourage more young people to pursue careers in technology.

Mr Nartey George said the provision of the modern ICT laboratories would further strengthen the impact of the Girls in ICT programme and create an enabling environment for students to develop their ICT knowledge and skills.

“We have made provisions and by 2027 these twn top schools will see the completion of their ICT labs," he announced.

On internet connectivity challenges in the Volta Region, the Minister attributed some of the disruptions to ongoing road construction under the government’s “Big Push” programme which, he claimed, has caused cuts to fibre-optic cables in some areas.

He said he is engaging the Minister responsible for roads and highways to find a lasting solution to the problem and ensure that road construction works do not continue to affect telecommunications infrastructure and connectivity.

“Yesterday ,I and the minister for roads who is the son of the region engaged ,two of our chief directors from the road ministry and ministry of communication to ensure they engage the telecom companies so that, we revamp efforts that will enable the contractors give advance informations to the telecom companies so that they can relocate the fibre optic cables before excavation works are done,” he said.

The Volta Regional Minister, James Gunu, said the Regional Coordinating Council would collaborate with the Communications Ministry to support the President’s vision of using ICT to drive development and improve opportunities for the people.

Mr Gunu described the Volta Region as a potential “one-stop” destination for investors, stressing that reliable network connectivity was essential for businesses to communicate, access digital services and transact efficiently.