Children in Malawi are expected to have easy access to quality digital learning following a five-year pan African partnership between Unicef and Airtel Africa.
According to a statement jointly signed by Unicef’s Executive Director Henrietta Fore and Airtel Africa Chief Executive Officer Olusegun Ogunsanya, the partnership which will be in existence until 2027 is pegged at 57 million US Dollars and will help to connect schools to internet to free access to learning platforms across 13 countries including Malawi.
The partnership will also help to promote inclusivity and ensure that vulnerable children reach their full potential and attain their goals,
The development follows the launch of the Reimage Education initiative by Unicef which called for public and private sector investment in digital learning as an essential service for every child and young person across the globe, which seeks to give children a chance to catch up on their learning needs amid the ongoing global pandemic.
Unicef Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, said hundreds of millions of children in Africa have seen their education disrupted or put on hold because of the COVID-19 pandemic as such championing digital education for children in Africa, will help put children’s learning back on track.
Among other things, the programme will call on technology and expertise, in addition to direct financial support to connect schools and communities to the internet and enable free access to online educational content for learners.
Furthermore it will provide vital data insights to inform Unicef’s work to scale-up digital learning and help ensure it is sustainable and meets students’ needs across Africa.
On his part, Chief Executive Officer for Airtel Africa, Olusegun Ogunsanya, said the move is in line with fulfillment of its corporate social responsibility which coincides with its new sustainability strategy, which lays its commitment to education.
The Airtel Africa and Unicef pan-African partnership will benefit learners in Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
