Cape Coast, June 21, GNA - Huawei Technologies Ghana, a computer firm, has donated 15 laptop computers hooked to the internet to boost the University of Cape Coast's (UCC) Information Technology Department toward= s the training of computer science students.

At a ceremony to handover the project, valued at 100,000 US dollars, a= t the weekend, the Minister of Communications, Mr. Haruna Iddrisu lauded the project and underscored the importance of training ICT students for the current job market.

Mr. Iddrisu gave assurance of the government's commitment to expand I= CT infrastructure in the country and appealed to the company to extend its fibre optic infrastructure directly to the UCC.

He intimated that the Ministry of Communications had partnered the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communication (GIFEC) to provide 100 computers made up of 50 laptops and 50 desk tops to the UCC to make Information Technology more accessible there.

Mr. Iddrusu said the government=91s vision of making the electoral process biometric for Ghanaians to register and vote electronically to ensure the credibility of the country's electoral system was on course. The Vice Chancellor of UCC, Professor Mrs Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, expressed gratitude to the company for the gesture and emphasized the University's commitment to improve students' training and access to ICT= .. She indicated that the facility would further provide students with th= e requisite practical skills to enable them to fit into the global market, saying that UCC was guarded by the principle of achieving excellence. They would, therefore, expand their collaboration with industry to realize that feat.

For her part, the managing director of Huawei Technologies Ghana, Ms. Diana Ayem, said the project was an on-going collaboration between the UCC and her organization and said its project team would be in constant touch t= o offer the necessary assistance as and when it was required. She said its engineers would also visit the UCC to train students on new applications and software relevant to their studies and for future work= , adding that, graduates from the university would be offered the opportunity to do national service with the company.

Ms. Ayem pledged the company's continued assistance to schools and universities to ensure that students gain adequate, relevant and practical training in ICT for the benefit of the country.