The United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, on Tuesday announced that the Nigeria Learning Passport, NLP, has reached a remarkable milestone of one million subscribers, describing it as a milestone in educational access in the country.
Announcing this in a press statement, UNICEF said the
groundbreaking digital learning platform was launched to ensure continuous
learning during the COVID-19 pandemic and has now become an essential tool in
providing quality as well as uninterrupted education to children across
Nigeria.
The NLP is a result of a collaborative effort between
UNICEF, the Federal and State Ministries of Education, and key partners among
others including Microsoft, Airtel, IHS Towers, Sony, Botnar Foundation, and
the Global Partnership for Education (GPE).
It offers over 15,000 curriculum-aligned educational
resources, including interactive lessons, digital textbooks, and self-paced
learning modules, designed to cater to students from primary to secondary
education levels, and for teachers and parents.
According to the UNICEF Nigeria Representative, Ms. Cristian
Munduate, reaching one million subscribers on the Nigeria Learning Passport is
a testament to the collective commitment to ensuring that every child in
Nigeria has access to quality education, regardless of their location or
circumstances.
Munduate said: “This platform is bridging the educational
gap and providing opportunities for children to learn and thrive, especially in
remote and underserved communities.”
The Nigeria Learning Passport has been instrumental in
addressing the educational disruptions caused by the pandemic, and most
recently by natural hazards and attacks on schools, ensuring that children
continue to learn in a safe and supportive environment. The platform’s
user-friendly interface has made it accessible to learners.
She explained that the soon-to-be-launched offline
capability will also make it accessible to learners with limited internet
connectivity, further promoting inclusivity in education.
The key features of the Nigeria Learning Passport include a
comprehensive Curriculum: Covering core subjects such as Mathematics, Science,
English, and Social Studies, available in local languages – English, Hausa,
Igbo and Yoruba, Interactive Learning: Engaging learners with videos, quizzes,
and interactive activities, free to use platform, and Data-free usage on an
Airtel SIM Card.
For offline Access; it allows students to download content
and study without an internet connection, and teacher resources: providing
educators with tools and materials to support effective teaching.
UNICEF further acknowledged the invaluable contributions of
its partners in making the Nigeria Learning Passport a success. The UN Agency
commended Airtel for providing data services to enhance accessibility, IHS for
supporting data and connectivity to ensure students stay connected, Microsoft
for offering the infrastructure that powers the platform, Sony and Botnar for
funding support to develop and expand the platform; Global Partnership for
Education (GPE for funding the setup of the platform, state technical teams,
building capacity of teachers and supply of devices.
UNICEF Nigeria pledged to continue to work closely with the
Federal and State Ministries of Education and other partners to expand the
reach of the Nigerian Learning Passport and enhance its content to meet the
evolving needs of learners.
The organisation added that the milestone marks a
significant step towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4, which aims
to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all.
UNICEF remains dedicated to creating a brighter future for
every child through education and innovation.