Marshalls University College & African Ladies In ICT
Accra,Ghana, 2016, April 28
MARSHALLS DEVELOP APPS FOR UN ON INTERNATIONAL GIRLS IN ICT DAY
Female students of Marshalls' School of Technology launched two innovative Mobile technology applications for nursing mothers and expectant women to mark this year's International Girls in ICT Day. The apps were developed to aid the Marshalls / United Nations collaborative project on Maternal Health and would thus be submitted to the International Telecommunications Unit. Ms Nancy Glaser, sitting in for Stanford University and the United Nations, graced the launch.
During the launch, it was unveiled the apps were developed by the African Ladies in ICT [ALICT] and the Marshalls I-Code Academy. Thus the apps were developed to provide easy and accessible medical aid information to women in all stages of motherhood. Team ALICT developed the app for expectant mothers while team I-Code developed the app for nursing mothers.
Ms Joy Twuasam, representing team I-Code at the launch, demonstrated how the app works as well as features available on the app in her presentation. The features include information on antenatal healthcare, what to expect in each week of pregnancy, medical aid, among others. She noted that the apps had been developed with women at all stages of pregnancy in mind. Presenting the app to the audience, Ms Twuasam said, "Whether you have only been carrying your seed for a week or as long as forty weeks, there is enough information on the expectantmum app to cater for both the would-be mother and her unborn child anywhere in the world", she stressed.
Ms Ayesha Kasule, team leader of the ALICT and student of the Marshalls School of Technology, gave an impressive presentation on the nursing mothers' app called Promum. Before developing the app, members of the ALICT team were assigned specific tasks on various aspects of their project before the team visited the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital to interact with several nursing mothers.
The Promum app is user-friendly and currently available on the Opera app store and on review on the Google Playstore. Its homepage, which follows a momentary flash, comprises several icons displayed with the ALICT logo in the background. The icons provide links to First Aid tips, information on the ALICT, medical aid and postnatal healthcare. Other features include dieting and breastfeeding tips, information on baby names, and a platform to interact with a certified medical consultant. Ms Kasule took the opportunity to advocate decency in breastfeeding. In the end, she remarked that her team were proud to launch the world's most important mobile application, designed to save nursing mothers and their infants.
Ms Nancy Glaser, guest speaker at the launch, commended Marshalls for collaborating with the UN on the launch. She remarked that she had been impressed by both teams' competencies and was positive that the apps would go a long way to serve the interests of women in all stages of maternity. She stated, "I am so happy that apps are being developed to cater for the needs of women. This is new and innovative. It's to your credit that you thought this over here at Marshalls."
Ms Glaser also took the opportunity to urge Marshalls to commence a silicon-oriented project on its campus. She observed that world-class institutions across the globe had established various silicon-oriented projects and compelled Marshalls to chart the same course. "Everywhere in the world there are various silicon projects. Whether in Scotland, Turkey, Russia, there is one silicon something or the other. We can also start a silicon something over here at Marshalls. I am here to help," she declared.
It must be reiterated that Ms Glaser is also a scholar of the renowned Stanford University. She is primarily at Marshalls as a volunteer for the Stanford Seed Programme, an Instructional course geared towards equipping individuals to grow enterprises and offer innovative services which benefit the regions in which they operate.
The President of Marshalls, Dr Tetteh Nettey, in his turn to address the launch, applauded both teams and their handlers. He stated that he was impressed with how much they had accomplished in so little a time. He charged handlers of both app developing teams to quickly get back to the drawing board to consider the feedback received and fuse in recommendations the audience had made to deliver an even more effectual app. He also commended Ms Nancy Ellen Glaser and the United Nations on their concern for maternal health. Dr Nettey also promised that Marshalls would work with Ms Glaser to develop its own silicon-oriented programme.
Both the Expectantmum and promum apps, developed here at Marshalls for expectant mothers and nursing mothers respectively, are currently available on the Google Play store. The apps add to a growing list of apps developed by the Marshalls school of Technology. Other apps developed include the Marshalls app, Marshalls Online Radio, and the Marshalls Music Club app.
