By Ngozi Nwankwo
Federal Government has announced plans for regulated internet access for children below the age of 16 as part of measures to safeguard minors from cyber threats and online exposure.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, made the announcement on Wednesday at the launch of the Initiative for Zero-Rated Access to Educational Platforms and Content in Nigeria in Abuja.
“President Tinubu’s commitment to the welfare of every Nigerian child requires government and stakeholders to remain vigilant against threats in the digital environment, including cyberattacks and other forms of online harm,” he said.
The minister also stated that the federal government through its digital education intervention has removed data costs for access to approved educational platforms for millions of learners in senior secondary schools and tertiary institutions.
Alausa said the intervention is part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and is designed to ensure that poverty, geography and the cost of connectivity no longer determine access to quality learning.
“A mobile phone, tablet or computer can become a classroom, library and gateway to opportunity when cost is no longer a barrier, particularly for learners from low-income households and communities where access to conventional educational infrastructure remains limited,” he said.
The Minister noted that the initiative falls under the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative, NESRI, with data and digitalisation at its core.
He said the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure, the Digital Nigeria Education Management Information System and the Learner Identification Number are being deployed to strengthen planning, management and delivery of education.
The Minister stressed the growing role of the telecommunications industry in education, saying connectivity is increasingly becoming as essential to learning as classrooms, textbooks and laboratories.
He called for sustained collaboration among the Ministry, State Governments, the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, telecommunications operators, technology companies, development partners, educational institutions and teachers to ensure digital education is accessible, safe and relevant.
“Nigeria must go beyond producing young people who merely consume technology to developing a generation that can create technology, innovate, solve problems and compete globally,” Alausa added.
Chairman of the House Committee on Communications, Hon. Peter Akpatason, commended the NCC for the initiative, describing the high cost of data as one of the most pressing barriers to learning in the digital age.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFund, Senator Mohammed Muntari Dandutse, said no Nigerian child should be left behind in accessing knowledge. He also commended telecommunications operators for corporate social responsibility initiatives that expand access to learning.
Alausa assured that the Federal Ministry of Education will continue to work with the NCC, state governments, operators and other stakeholders to translate the initiative into lasting impact for Nigerian learners.
