Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in conjunction with the Universal Basic education UBEC has begun a two-day smart education conference tagged: “Institutionalisation of Smart Education in Nigeria”.
The country director of KOICA, Mr. Son Sungil, told participants at the event that the overarching objective of the conference was to consolidate efforts towards creating an inclusive and sustainable smart quality education in Nigeria public schools.
The conference pulled together important stakeholders in Nigeria’s basic education space such as Executive chairmen of State Universal Basic Education Board from Kano, Nasarawa, FCT, Ekiti, Cross River and Bauchi states, alongside Representative of Ministry of Education, Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, the Executive Secretary of Universal Basic Education Commission, among others. Also in participation were education experts from the Republic of Korea.
The conference will also feature progress of Smart Schools Programme in Nigeria and foster dynamic exchange of ideas, dialogue on the role of technology in basic education.
UBEC had since embarked on Smart education programme where smart schools were established across the 36 states and the FCT, among which KOICA is supporting six of the schools on a grant of $10.4million with international and local capacity building for teachers, educators, and policy makers.
Highlighting the commission’s collaborative achievements with KOICA, he said KOICA has been involved in UBEC’s nation-wide smart school program over the years, and has recorded several achievements such as high-level invitational training for our SUBEB chairmen and UBEC executives across the country.
Other areas of achievements according to him include capacity building program for smart school leadership and teachers in and out of Nigeria, development of digital contents on Maths and Science, provision of digital smart studio equipment and Consultation on the direction and strategy for smart education and the operation guideline for smart school.
Also, the executive secretary, UBEC, Dr. Hamid Bobboyi said this bold attempt to establish schools that pervasively use technology will allow Nigerian children to get qualitative education comparable to what children in many advanced countries have in different parts of the world.
He added that provision of qualitative smart education to our young learners is an expensive venture considering the required massive building infrastructure, very high networking, equipment and devices costs, and sophisticated teacher training needs.
He also thanked KOICA for its pioneering assistance, while calling on the collective resolve and partnership of the Federal, State and Local Governments as well as international development organizations, local donors, private organizations and philanthropic individuals towards this initiative.
