FG, UNICEF launch digital learning platform for 12m students

The Federal Government, United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), and other partners on Thursday launched the Nigeria Learning Passport (NLP), a mobile learning platform to provide continuous access to quality education, targeting 12 million learners by 2025.

Already, about 9.7 million children in Nigeria may not return to school due to insecurity, and other factors.

With the launch, Nigeria has joined 20 other countries where the learning passport is reaching children with improved learning opportunities.

A learner can register on the platform using any device with a web browser, or through the NLP mobile application, to access a variety of high-quality learning content, Persecondnews.com gathered.

According to the UN body, the NLP is designed for pre-primary, primary, and secondary school learning.

It also added that children, youth, and teachers can access a digitalized curriculum providing learning materials in all core curriculum subjects for Primary One to Six, and all Junior and Senior Secondary School classes.

In her goodwill message at the launch in Abuja, UNICEF’s Executive Director, Catherine Russell noted that the passport will help education resources to reach the most vulnerable and marginalized learners.

“Before COVID-19, about 10.5 million Nigerian children aged between 5 and 14 were not in school.

“Today in Nigeria, more than 9.7 million children are at risk of never returning to school, their learning left behind. The learning passport can help change that.

“By offering simple, easy and fun ways to learn, as well as tailor-made training programs, the learning platform will help respond to the needs of every child.

“With online, offline and mobile options, it can help us reach the most vulnerable and marginalized learners,” she said.

In his remarks, the Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo, who was represented by the Minister of State for Education, Chief Emeka Nwajiuba, said there must be a change in the education sector to ensure continuity of learning.

He said: “To ensure continuity of learning for all children and the resilience of education systems to future shocks, we must change and reimagine the education sector.

“Deploying innovations that rethink the current methodologies, including new approaches to delivering education in ways that defy the digital divide, and ensuring learning continuity in emergencies, has become imperative.”

The NLP is also supported by Generation Unlimited in Nigeria (GenU 9JA), with the aim of delivering connectivity and digital learning to young Nigerians at scale.

Partners such as IHS Towers and Airtel are currently connecting schools to the internet and providing zero-rated data to ensure that UNICEF can deploy the NLP in connected schools and reach millions of children with digital learning.