By Rita Esegine
About 12 million primary and secondary school children in Nigeria would benefit from a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) learning plarform, said the UN education agency
Known as Nigeria Learning Passport, the education programme is an online, mobile, and soon-to-be offline platform that enables continuous access to quality education.
Contained in a statement made available to newsmen by UNICEF ‘s communication specialist, Geoffrey Njoku, on Tuesday 22 March, 2022, in Abuja, the Agency noted that it would help improve learning outcomes and give every child a fair chance in life, even as the body raised the alarm that over 9.7 million children in Nigeria were at risk of never returning to school, as a result of insecurity and other factors.
The content would be offered in English, Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba, while children, youths and teachers could access a digitalised curriculum providing instructional and supplementary learning materials in all core curricular subjects for primary one to six, as well as Junior and Senior Secondary School classes.
The statement partly reads: “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.
“Children, youth, and teachers can access a digitalized curriculum providing instructional and supplementary learning materials in all core curricular subjects for Primary One to Six, and all Junior and Senior Secondary School classes.
“Learners registered on the Nigeria Learning Passport platform will be able to study whether they are connected to the internet or not. This will provide access to continuous learning, including in locations where insecurity hinders learners’ access to schools. With online, mobile, and soon-to-be offline options, it can help reach the most vulnerable and marginalized learners, helping to respond to the needs of every child. The Learning Passport aims to reach 3 million learners in 2022, and 12 million by 2025.”
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