IT literacy vital for benefitting from development: MP Namal Rajapaksa

Wednesday, 7 December 2011 00:59 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Information Technology literacy is vital for truly reaping the fruits of development, said Hambantota District MP Namal Rajapaksa. The MP pointed out that there should be an IT literate society if the benefits of development are to effectively accrue to Sri Lanka which is currently progressing in the path of development.

From left: Silver medallist R. M. Shivanti, ICTA Chairman Prof. P. W. Epasinghe, Senior Rural Affairs Minister Athauda Seneviratne, Hambantota District MP Namal Rajapaksa and Telecommunication and Technology Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya

MP Namal Rajapaksa said so while officially inaugurating the ‘e-diriya’ national IT literacy initiative at the Vidyasagara Pirivena Buddhist Temple at Kotiyakumbura in Kegalle recently.

‘e-diriya’ initiative aims at providing a basic computer knowledge to 50,000 ‘Samurdhi’ recipients and schoolchildren. MP Namal Rajapaksa emphasised that IT was an important tool in every sphere of the country’s development. Due to this many take great interest in the use of IT as a tool. Pointing out that the number of the country’s telephone connections had exceeded the population, MP Namal said further that the main objective of the ‘e-diriya’ national IT literacy initiative was to make the use of computers reach such a level as well.

However MP Namal Rajapaksa stressed that it was imperative that the computer, internet and telephone are used for healthy purposes. The MP pointed out that the country’s development becomes more meaningful only if the future generation becomes righteous. For this the background should be prepared by the schools, the MP added.

Participating in the occasion ICT Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) Chairman Professor P. W. Epasinghe pointed out that the widespread availability of ICT equipment such as computers and mobile phones should be accompanied by equally widespread availability of facilities to use them. The Professor said that considering this, ICTA launched various programmes connected with IT literacy during the past several years.

“Through the new project that we begin today we have taken steps to provide information technology knowledge to a segment of society that had not been covered before. From today we begin providing IT training to especially to 20,000 Samurdhi recipients in the first round. I think that this simple computer knowledge will help them change their standard of life in a positive way. I believe that although the computer cannot satisfy the hunger of Samurdhi recipients it will at least be able to equip them with knowledge and strategy for setting them free from poverty.”

“That is why we have named this project ‘e-diriya’. The idea behind this is to fill the underprivileged group of people in our society with courage through IT. The purpose is to equip them with courage and strength to go forward in the world via computer knowledge,” Epasinghe said. During this inauguration of this ‘e-diriya’ national IT literacy initiative, MP Namal Rajapaksa also launched the www.e-diriya.lk website. Presenting of a laptop to R. M. Shivanti of St. Joseph’s Girls’ Mahavidyalaya, Kegalle who brought fame to Sri Lanka by winning a silver medal at the Commonwealth Youth Sports Meet 400 metre race, also took place in the sidelines of the launch of this ‘e-diriya’ national IT literacy initiative.