From Scholastica Onyeka, Makurdi
United Nations Children’s Fund, (UNICEF), has solicited for the active participation of media actors to promote increased enrollment of young learners into the Nigeria Learning Passport, (NLP), Programme for access to uninterrupted and quality education.
UNICEF made this call at a one-day Media Strategy Meeting on how to achieve uptake of NLP in communities, schools, LGAs, hard to reach areas and for all persons living in difficult circumstances, in Benue, Enugu and Cross River states. It was organized in Enugu state by Enugu State Universal Basic Education Board and the state ministry of Education in collaboration with UNICEF.
The Nigeria Learning Passport, (NLP), is an online, mobile, and offline digital learning platform powered by Microsoft that enables continuous access to 15,000 curriculum aligned learning and training materials in local languages for learners, teachers, and parents.
It was launched last year, 2022, by UNICEF and the Federal Ministry of Education to bridge the access gap to quality learning opportunities for young learners in the country.
The Communication Officer UNICEF, Enugu Field Office, Dr Ijeoma Onuoha-Ogwe, charged newsmen to use their various platforms to advance increased enrollment into the digital space, while also urging the Government to explore ways to ensure that all children have access to continued education.
According to her, the essence of the meeting was to identify media networks in targeted three states of Enugu, Benue and Cross Rivers, and get them acquainted on the NLP’s operational mode and it’s potentials for educational advancement among young learners in the state.
It was also to enable journalists prioritize and set agenda for accelerated NLP uptake, unify with Government and persons in positions to take favourable actions for children development as well as holding them accountable.
She, therefore, urged the media to be committed to pitching the NLP prospects and agenda, using their platforms to enable them achieve set enrollment targets for NLP uptakes in the three states.
The Education Specialist, UNICEF Field Office, Enugu, Dr Agatha Nzeribe, said there was need to determine the key initiatives on how to achieve the uptake of NLP in the country.
She emphasized the importance of the media in projecting the global digital literacy Programme to the public, saying it is targeted at bridging the gap between the formal and informal education system.
Nzeribe who identified limited quality education in language children understand, lack of quality curriculum and learning materials, and professional development resources to support provision of quality education among others and lack of quality learning resources and tools as challenges to access l quality education , she stated that NLP is a once in a lifetime opportunity to transform education as it brings about remediation, community and parental engagement, digital/remote learning, among other benefits.
She said NLP can be used in early childhood education, parents and teachers’ training, technical and vocational education and training, youths and adolescent skills, primary and secondary school education among others and called on all to key into it.
Director Education, Benue State E-learning/Virtual Education ICT Makurdi, Mr Francis Dera, who noted that Benue State has already keyed into the programme, assured UNICEF of the enrollment of over 500,000 NLP users before the end of the year 2023.
Some of the participants, Mr Peter Duru, Joseph Kwaghdegha from Benue State, and Ragis Anukuoji of Enugu all appreciated the organizers of the meeting and promised to create awareness on the programme to encourage more uptakes in their respective states.