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COVID-19: DAWN Commission partners NGO on e-learning for SW students

To ensure no child is left behind in education development in spite of the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic, the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission in partnership with the Ibironke Adeagbo Foundation (IAF), has inaugurated a cheap and affordable e-learning device for all students in the South Western part of the country to continue to learn from home.
While introducing and handing over 55 units of the device to the Director General of the DAWN Commission, Mr Seye Oyeleye, at its Cocoa House, Dugbe, Ibadan, Oyo State office, the Trustee of IAF, Mr Diran Famakinwa, said that 20,000 of the digital devices loaded with data and syllabus had already been introduced to the Lagos State government and was working to cushion the effects of COVID-19 and continuous education in the state.
For him, Ibironke Adeagbo, a UK Chartered Accountant, who conceived the idea in order to bridge the gap between the Western world and Nigeria in education sector, was poised to co-opt the governors of Oyo, as well as, those of Ondo, Ekiti and Ogun, to buy into the idea so that other students aside the SS3 and JS3 who are being prepared to write their terminal examinations, are not left behind in their studies.
Representing his boss, who could not be in Nigeria due to flight restrictions, Famakinwa said that the device which will cost just about N3,000 and which is loaded with general syllabus and data can be supported by the governors to remove the series of obstacles being faced by the students and ensure they are exposed to proper education foundation to develop.
Aside this, the device according to him: “Is to focus on the girl-child, and remove the obstacles before them; as well as, equip the out-of-school children ranging from 31 to 58 million, and get them educated. This number is huge. We want to look into initiatives to get this plans work. Lagos State has pioneered this electronic device with Internet and data and we are trying to replicate same in the other states of the South West.
“The device will go a long way to help the students get the remote education in spite of being out of school. This is more important since no one knows when COVID-19 will eventually go from Nigeria and we cannot afford to continue to keep our students at home till eternity.
“The Ibironke Adeagbo Foundation is delighted for contributing our quota in conjunction with the DAWN Commission to ensure every student benefits in it. It is like pencil and pen which every student must learn with. If our governors can allocate millions of naira to buying exercise books and text books, they should also be able to set aside some millions for this device. Free education started from the Western Region in the 50s by Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and many older ones benefitted from it. Through this digital education device, our younger generation can also get adequately educated,” he said.
Responding while receiving the units of the digital device, the DAWN Commission DG, Oyeleye, observed that not many students and parents could afford data for digital education.
“We have always believed that the future of education has to be digital, but that future has suddenly arrived with COVID-19 and so we have to be creative to bridge the gap between us and the Western countries. In order to get students in remote areas connected, we have also collaborated with Telecoms companies, as well as, contents providers,” Oyeleye said.

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