By Omoyeni Ojeifo
In a bid to protect Nigerian children from online threats, the Federal Government is planning regulated internet access for under-16 as it expands digital learning opportunities across the country.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, announced the plan on Thursday at the launch of the Initiative for Zero-Rated Access to Educational Platforms and Content in Nigeria.
The planned regulation comes as digital technology becomes increasingly central to learning, raising concerns over cyber attacks and other forms of online harm involving children.Alausa said the government placed the wellbeing and dignity of Nigerian children at the centre of the digital education drive, calling for greater vigilance against threats in the online environment.
“At some point, there would be regulated internet access for every child below the age of 16 years as part of measures to strengthen online child protection.”
The minister also launched an intervention to remove data costs from access to approved educational platforms and content for millions of learners in senior secondary schools and tertiary institutions.
“The initiative is designed to ensure that poverty, geography and connectivity costs do not determine who has access to quality learning,” he noted.
Alausa emphasized that digital devices could serve as classrooms, libraries and gateways to knowledge, particularly for learners from low-income households and communities with limited conventional infrastructure.
The intervention forms part of the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative, NESRI, with data and digitalisation positioned at the centre of efforts to improve education planning, management and delivery.
According to the Minister, the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure, NEDI, Digital Nigeria Education Management Information System, DNEMIS, and Learner Identification Number, LIN, are also being deployed to strengthen planning, management and delivery across the education sector.
For Alausa, the real measure of digital transformation is its ability to reach learners and improve the quality of education they receive.
The minister called for collaboration among the Ministry of Education, state governments, the Nigerian Communications Commission, telecom operators, technology companies, development partners, educational institutions and teachers.
He also urged Nigeria to move beyond producing young people who merely consume technology to creating a generation capable of developing technology, innovating and solving problems that can compete globally.
Alausa reaffirmed the Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope education agenda of breaking barriers, expanding opportunities and harnessing technology so that geography does not determine a learner’s future and poverty does not close the door to knowledge.
Speaking also at the launch, Mr. Peter Akpatason, Chairman of the House Committee on Communications, lauded the NCC for supporting the initiative and described the high cost of data as one of the most pressing barriers to learning.
“Data cost is one of the most pressing barriers to learning, particularly for children and young people in underserved and hard-to-reach communities,”he said.
Akpatason stressed that the House of Representatives remained committed to policies and legislation that would leverage technology to bridge Nigeria’s education gap.
On his part, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFund, Senator Mohammed Muntari Dandutse, also backed the initiative, stressing the importance of ensuring that no child is left behind.
“Access to knowledge is fundamental to progress, and every effort must be made to ensure that no child is left behind.”
Dandutse commended the telecommunications industry for its contributions through corporate social responsibility initiatives, particularly in supporting access to education.
Author
Leave a comment