MARYPRISCA Mahundi, Information, Communications and Information Technology deputy minister has encouraged school headmasters/ headmistresses to establish digital clubs as they will help youth in boosting creativity and innovations.

Eng Mahundi made the call here over the weekend during the International Girls in ICT Day celebrations, which included exhibitions showcasing students' technological solutions to community challenges.

The deputy minister emphasized the importance of digital clubs in schools to enhance youth skills in ICT, underscoring the significance of ICT in finding technological solutions to various challenges in society, promoting digital economy growth, and enabling national and international competitiveness. She also commended the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) for organizing the event which carried the theme of "Leadership" to promote gender equality and break barriers in Women taking the lead in ICT sector. 

She further urged TCRA to ensure proper mechanisms for innovators to benefit from their solutions and create employment opportunities for students.

Dr Jones Killimbe, TCRA Board chairman acknowledged the contributions of various stakeholders in improving communication services and promoting technological development. He emphasized the importance of creating an enabling environment for girls to engage in ICT and innovation. 

Dr Jabir Bakari, TCRA director general stressed the significance of girls engaging in technological innovations, studying engineering, and participating in research of new technologies such as AI so as to develop more ICT professionals at all levels of education. 

He highlighted the growth of the communication sector in Tanzania where by statistics show that until March, 2024 there have been 75 million telephone lines from 61 million telephone lines in June 2023, which is equivalent to an increase of 13 percent. In addition, the figures for March also show an increase in internet users by 8.3 percent from 34 million users in June 2023 to 36.8 million in March 2024.

Dr Jabiri mentioned some of the reasons that have contributed to the advancement which are increase of the use of the internet which has also contributed to having a lot of local Swahili content and major investment in infrastructure has been made in all technologies i.e. 2g, 3g, 4g and 5g. Also, the technology of internet services using fiber has contributed to the increase in the use of the internet where approximately 49 thousand users benefit from this technology at home (Fiber To Home) while more than 5 thousand users benefit from this technology in offices (Fiber To Office)

The TCRA boss also mentioned the growth in the broadcasting sector where there has been an increase in the number of decoders and online content services providers while postal services and parcel delivery have increased, thus shaping the growth of online business such as e-commerce.

He emphasized that the growth is an outcome of the government's efforts in collaboration with service providers to enhance communication services in the country, assuring regular updates on the sector's growth to stakeholders for a better understanding of the industry. 

Dr. Bakari said that the Authority in collaboration with the Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH), supports technological innovations by providing necessary communication resources free of charge for three months to enhance innovation. International Girls in ICT Day is celebrated every last Thursday of April to encourage girls to pursue science-related studies. The theme for the 2024 celebration was "Leadership."

Elisa Mbise, ministry’s representative reaffirmed the Ministry's commitment to creating a conducive environment for ICT development by updating ICT policies to align with scientific and technological advancements.