'COVID-19 has revealed the digital divide that prevails in the world', says Nigerien President Issoufou

02 Septembre 2020

Niamey, Niger, September 2 (Infosplusgabon) - "The health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the digital divide that prevails in the world," said Nigerien President Issoufou Mahamadou, stressing that in the case of his country, a minority of students living in big cities have been able, thanks to digital technology, to maintain a link with school.

"The vast majority of students who live in rural areas have been literally cut off from the world, thus finding themselves unable to continue with normal schooling, due to families' inaccessibility to digital technology", underlined President Issoufou in a speech on the occasion of the virtual UN summit on the theme “Generations without limits: connecting half of the world to opportunities”.

For the Nigerien president, the Covid-19 is "an opportunity" to shape education in the 21st century through digital technology, "the only means that has allowed the continuation of teaching and learning in the world during the period of confinement".

“Thanks to digital technology, the right to education can be guaranteed, despite natural disasters. It will help end inequalities in access to knowledge. It will also improve the quality of teaching, as distant education will create the conditions for permanent, effective and efficient teacher training”.

President Issoufou noted "in view of the unequal access to textbooks in our schools, the promotion of digital tools on a large scale in our establishments will ensure that each young person will have the educational content necessary for their training.

Distance education appears to be "a necessity and an asset" for our planet, underlined the Nigerien president, adding that "digital technology must henceforth constitute the shield with which our education systems will strengthen their resilience in the face of various crises and disasters".

The Nigerien head of state also welcomed the upcoming start of the LIRE project, the result of cooperation between the Global Education Partnership and Niger.

Funded to the tune of US$ 140 million, the LIRE project will aim to implement a short- and medium-term strategy to systematize the use of digital technology by allowing the optimization of management and piloting assistance, and the development of digital uses to support educational practices.

Other important initiatives are implemented by Niger with the support of partners such as GIGA to connect more than 19,000 schools or the “Pathfinders” project for a pilot programme to connect 100 schools in collaboration with UNICEF.

In addition, several other projects are currently being implemented by the Nigerien Government, including in particular the Smart Villages Project which benefits from funding of US$ 100 million with the World Bank to digitally open up several thousand villages, the “COURSERA” Project which is the world's largest online course platform.

This project gives free access to all its courses to 15,000 Nigeriens.

The digital revolution can serve not only the education sector but also all other sectors of human activity: health, agriculture, industry, etc.

"It is a response to a world that has become fragile in the face of the multifaceted challenges it faces. It can facilitate our common actions”.

“The Covid-19 pandemic would have been even more devastating if it had appeared 20 years earlier. The world would have been cut off between several regions without the possibility of communication, and therefore coordination of the response. ICTs have greatly contributed to the success recorded in the response”.

FIN/ INFOSPLUSGABON/TFG/GABON2020

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