In a bid to reduce cybercrime rate in Ghana, CyberGhana has set up five cybersecurity centres in five tertiary institutions in the country.
The cybersecurity centres are in Cape Coast Technical University, Sunyani Technical University, Koforidua Technical University, Bolgatanga Technical University and Ghana Baptist University College.
The project is an extension of the National Initiative for Cyber Engineering, Science and Technology Educational Programme (NICESTEP).
According to the nonprofit, the centres will serve as places for the training of students and professionals from various fields to acquaint themselves with relevant skills to counter cyber threats.
The project is a response to Ghana’s loss of an estimated 6.8 million dollars through cyber fraud as well as $2.7 million to intrusion and stealing in 2019.
The Executive Director of CyberGhana, Sam Owusu, said the alarming rate of cybercrime in Ghana can largely be attributed to the high unemployment rate among young people in the country.
Owusu said the project will provide consultancy services on cybersecurity and forensics as well as hands-on training for interested persons to pioneer artificial knowledge studies in the nation.
According to Owusu, aside from crime prevention, cybersecurity and cyber engineering training and education also provide an avenue for employment, which in itself is a way of preventing crime.
‘Globally, there are over three million unfilled cybersecurity job openings. We have several students graduating every year who have no jobs available’, he said.
‘So we want to train students to have hands-on skills to secure some of these available vacancies, while also protecting our cyberspaces’.
Source: Modern Ghana
Photo source: Modern Ghana
