UN Delivers 350 Laptops to the Ministry of Education

The United Nations has delivered 350 laptop computers to the Ministry of Education for distribution to families who need devices for their children’s online education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Minister of Education, Dr. the Honourable Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, received the computers from UN Resident Coordinator, Marina Walter, in a virtual handover ceremony on June 11.

Funding for the computers came from the UN’s Generation Unlimited (Gen U) initiative, a global project that aims to transform education so it can better provide young people with the skills they need for the jobs and businesses of the future.

Minister Gadsby-Dolly thanked the UN for supporting the Ministry’s efforts to transform the education system, an initiative that increasingly relies on digital technology.

“If Covid-19 has taught us anything, it is the fact that our world has and will continue to evolve exponentially, and our students must be prepared for the dynamic shift that is taking place. I am again grateful to organizations like the United Nations who see a need and contribute to making a difference.”

Mrs. Walter said the investment in laptops demonstrated the UN’s commitment to Trinidad and Tobago’s Government and people.

“COVID-19 accelerated efforts that were already underway to modernise the country’s education sector by integrating more digital technology into how education is delivered to, and accessed by, students,” Ms. Walter said. “The UN is happy to support the Government’s efforts to build back better after the pandemic, in a way that fulfills the commitment of all UN member states to leave no one behind.”

Gen U is also supporting the Government with two potentially transformative assessments:

• determining the skills the economy will need to diversify and grow, especially in the smart technologies that are beginning to dominate the global economy
• and ascertaining the changes required in the education system to help students develop these skills.

Trinidad and Tobago is the first Caribbean country to implement Gen U. The country’s President, Her Excellency Paula-Mae Weekes, co-chairs the global initiative with the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres.

UNICEF is the UN’s implementing agency for Gen U in Trinidad and Tobago. Its Representative for the Eastern Caribbean, Dr. Aloys Kamuragiye, said “During this pandemic, more than 1 billion of the world’s children have been at risk of falling behind in their education because schools were closed to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Remote learning is not feasible if children do not have personal computers. We must avoid deepening any existing learning inequalities, and that is why UNICEF committed to providing these laptops.”