ICTA in the forefront to make Sri Lanka a digitally inclusive nation

Digital literacy 43% at present

BY SURESH PERERA

In keeping with the President’s vision, the Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) of Sri Lanka has launched multiple initiatives to make Sri Lanka a digitally inclusive country.

As the apex ICT institution of the Government, the ICTA has been mandated to take all necessary measures to implement the Government’s Policy and Action Plan in relation to Information and Computer Technology.

“We are looking at a rapid positive change in digital transformation without waiting for the next 10 to 15 years to create a technology based society”, says a senior ICTA official.

It is to accelerate the digital transformation process and achieve the objective of a digitally inclusive Sri Lanka that the ICTA’s intervention is necessary, he stressed.

“We should make digital technology normal for everybody just like, for example, electricity which was a privilege at one point, but is now general purpose for the citizenry. Our target is to make digital technology general purpose for the consumption of everybody by 2024”, he noted.

He said that targets need to be accelerated to make the whole population or at least 75% of it digitally literate. At present, digital literacy stands at 43%. Computer literacy doesn’t mean learning how to switch on and off a computer. It goes beyond the basics and extends to the effective use of digital technology to surf the web, access online fora or use social media for communication purposes.

A farmer should be able to use Whatsapp or any such freeware or cross-platform for consultations on matters regarding his crops. Not everybody who uses a mobile phone is digitally literate. The concept of digital technology should be an integral part of day-to-day life of the citizenry, the official outlined.

He said the ICTA is working in collaboration with government institutions, industry stakeholders, NGOs and INGOs to achieve dedicated targets to make Sri Lanka digitally inclusive. In a technology based society, everybody should be able to consume something.

It’s an enormous challenge, he underlined. “We need to push ahead with our 900 plus initiatives to make the digital transformation in Sri Lanka happen at a swift pace”.

There is a significant digital transformation of government institutions which have become citizen- friendly and citizen-centric as a result. The ICTA facilitates the task of building sustainable capacity and improving processes to achieve set objectives, the official continued.

The ICTA has rolled out a dedicated government learning platform free of charge to state institutions for educational purposes, he said.

“We are also working on meeting the demand for ICT professionals in the country. The gap has to be bridged by producing sufficient ICT professionals to meet the growing demand”, he emphasized.

He said that ICT across the board encompasses schools, government, vocational and higher education. There is also key focus on enhancing and promoting smart education.

Another focal point is on using digit technology effectively for mass education in a post-Covid situation, he further said.

“We also support professional education”, he added.

Technology adoption is another key area as just as much as capacity building is imperative, trust and confidence should go hand in hand. People should have the competence and the trust to use it, he said.

The 21st century is knowledge-centric. True competitiveness lies in how well technology is integrated into every economic sector, be it agriculture, industry, service or else. It is imperative that Sri Lanka invests strategically in this century’s new innovative technologies, integrate such innovations into our education systems and incorporate innovative measures to our economic framework. The quality of life of people should be enhanced by creating a culture of Technological Innovation.