First Lady urges responsible use of ICT gadgets for education

Tendai Rupapa in VICTORIA FALLS

LEARNERS must use information and communications technology (ICT) gadgets exclusively for educational purposes and desist from the internet material that ruins their future, First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa has said.

She made the remarks on Friday at Baobab Primary School in Victoria Falls, where Serbian First Lady Mrs Tamara Vucic gifted learners ICT gadgets in the form of tablets on the sidelines of the first-ever United Nations Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy in Africa.

**First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa and her Serbian counterpart Mrs Tamara Vucic hug Baobab Primary School learners during the donation of tablets in Victoria Falls on Friday**

Mrs Vucic, Angolan First Lady Ana Dias Lourenço and representatives sent by First Ladies from Rwanda, Equatorial Guinea, Burundi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Namibia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Mozambique, Nigeria, Angola, Cameroon, Malawi, Egypt, Tunisia and Botswana are in the country at the invitation of Amai Mnangagwa to attend the first-ever gastronomy tourism forum for Africa.

The learners also received words of encouragement from Amai Mnangagwa, her counterparts and representatives of First Ladies, who interacted with them, giving them words of wisdom. They said ICT gadgets can help the learners achieve academic goals and enhance learning experiences.

**Serbian First Lady Tamara Vucic interacts with one of the learners at Baobab Primary School during the donation of tablets to enhance their ICT capacity in Victoria Falls on Friday**

The learners were overjoyed as they put on their dancing shoes and took to the dance floor in appreciation of the kind gesture.

Handing over the gadgets to the school, the Serbian First Lady said education goes hand in hand with innovation, hence the donation to the school.

“I want to thank you for the dancing skills you showcased and your positive energy. I am so pleased to be here today with you and first of all, I would like to greet Her Excellency, Amai, the First Lady of Zimbabwe; Her Excellency, the First Lady of Angola; and the ministers representing their First Ladies. I came from far away, bringing you greetings from students from the Republic of Serbia,” she said.

**Angolan First Lady Ana Dias Lourenço hugs Baobab Primary School learners during the donation of tablets by Serbian First Lady Tamara Vucic at their school in Victoria Falls on Friday**

“They are all like you, and they also value education. Our idea was to help in a way with your education because education goes hand- in-hand with innovation, so we cannot live without that. That was the idea to give these tablets. While using them, I hope you will be able to learn something educative. You can also have fun a little bit by going through the history of different countries before you are old enough to go by yourself and physically explore them and come back to your own country, because that is where your heart is, no doubt. Thank you so much for accepting my gift.”

Dr Mnangagwa thanked other First Ladies for honouring her invitation and had an interaction with the schoolchildren, where she encouraged them to embrace the ICT gadgets as valuable tools for enhancing their educational journey.

She reminded the learners that the internet is a powerful tool for learning and growth; therefore, they should use it responsibly and stay safe online.

Baobab Primary School learners jubilantly welcome First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa, Serbian First Lady Tamara Vucic, Angolan First Lady Ana Dias Lourenço and representatives of the First Ladies of Rwanda, Equatorial Guinea, Tanzania, Burundi and Namibia at their school in Victoria Falls on Friday

“I want to thank you, Your Excellencies, for coming to Zimbabwe and all of you, for being with us and for being with me specifically at this gastronomy tourism conference that we came for. When you do your things and you have your sisters and your friends accompanying you, you feel at home and like a different person altogether. I want to thank you very much because you left your work, busy schedules to be with me and on top of that to be with these children. Vana vangu, the First Lady from Serbia has brought this for you, now I want to ask you some questions. I want you to be very honest with me. What are you going to use these tablets for?

“Anything that comes in your mind, please let me know. What are you going to use these tablets for? What are you going to look for on the internet?” she asked.

“Researching,” a learner responded, whereupon Dr Mnangagwa continued probing as to what type of research the children would undertake.

“Some ICT tools and homework,” one of the learners said.

“Tell me more, I am listening?” Dr Mnangagwa asked, to which the children said: “We will use them for information processing and data management.”

Another learner weighed in, saying: “We have school projects coming up, so we will use these gadgets for researching purposes so that we excel in our studies.”

**Baobab Primary School learners hug First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa during the donation of tablets by Serbian First Lady Tamara Vucic to enhance their ICT capacity in Victoria Falls on Friday**

The First Lady was not yet through. She asked: “There are so many things that we learn at school. Particularly, what do you want to research?”

“Maths,” one said, while another shouted: “To play games.”

“I was looking for something like this. Now, he has told us things that you were hiding from me. The games. What type of games, vanangu? Won’t this distract you from your studies; will you be able to help with household chores or you will just spend all your time on games? I want you to use these tablets wisely. As you explore the vast world of online information, please stay away from harmful content on the internet. Remember to prioritise your safety and well-being. Also, be cautious of inappropriate or explicit content, misleading or false information and cyberbullying,” she said to wild applause.