World Computer Literacy Day 2021: All you need to know
The modern age has undergone a digital revolution as well as technological advancement and made computers essential parts of our lives. This has necessitated computer literacy for all. To propagate this idea, every year, on 2nd December, World Computer Literacy Day is being observed. Every year, World Computer Literacy Day has unique and different themes. This year, the theme is “Literacy for human-centred recovery: Narrowing the digital divide.”
History behind World Computer Literacy Day
On 2nd December 2001, the Indian computer company NIIT celebrated its 20th anniversary. During this event, the company observed that there was a huge gender divide in the computer literacy ratio globally. This is when they founded the World Computer Literacy Day to promote digital literacy among underprivileged communities (to promote digital literacy not only among men but also among women) in both India and the rest of the world. It also meant to motivate individuals to develop interest and learn how to operate computers, their processes and theories for their own benefits.
Significance of World Computer Literacy Day
Computer literacy means understanding how computers function and how computer programmes help make our lives easier and better. In fact, it is one of the most significant skills in the modern world.
Computers are tools of innovation and communication that make our day-to-day lives easier as they are fast, accurate, efficient and can accomplish any number of tasks. They can also store vast number of data and help us find relevant information with the use of internet.
For this reason, World computer Literacy Day is commemorated every year to raise awareness about the need of computers and encourage people to educate themselves and in turn use computers effectively. In fact, every organisation, including government offices, private companies, banks and educational institutes are also encouraged to acquire sound computer knowledge to generate better productivity.
World Computer Literacy Day further aims to bridge the digital divide that exists in our society and to inspire general public, especially women and children to learn about computers and use them for their everyday affairs apart from motivating them to acquire the new age technological skills that will not benefit but also empower them.