According to the UN, Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rates of educational exclusion in the world, with approximately 98 million children out of school. To address this issue, governments and various international partners are implementing several initiatives.
Chinese mobile phone manufacturer Tecno announced a partnership with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday, July 18th, to support the "Nigeria Learning Passport" initiative. This digital learning platform aims to provide educational opportunities for children across Nigeria, particularly those residing in remote and underserved areas.
"Digital learning is a powerful tool in bridging educational gaps and ensuring that every child has the opportunity to learn and thrive. With TECNO's support, we are one step closer to our goal of making education accessible to all children in Nigeria, empowering them to build a brighter future," said Cristian Munduate, Unicef's representative in Nigeria.
Nigeria, like many African nations, grapples with a high rate of out-of-school children. Data from UNICEF published in 2022 reveals approximately 18.3 million children are not enrolled in school, placing Nigeria among countries with the world's highest number of out-of-school children. Insecurity is cited as a primary driver of this situation.
To address this educational crisis, the Federal Ministry of Education and UNICEF launched the "Nigeria Learning Passport" program in 2022, aligning with UNICEF's global education strategy established in 2018. The program aims to further close the educational gap and improve education quality by expanding to include offline content for 50,000 children in remote and low-income areas in 2024.
The partnership with Tecno is expected to accelerate this progress by strengthening content development, facilitating the purchase and maintenance of technical equipment, and providing professional training for educators. Notably, the program has already seen significant growth, expanding to 19 Nigerian states and registering approximately 888,000 users, ranking Nigeria second in participation globally.
Samira Njoya
