African experts urge harnessing of digital technologies to boost literacy

NAIROBI, April 25(Xinhua) -- There is need for African governments to scale up investments in broadband infrastructure in order to expand access to education, experts said on Wednesday during the Pan African Conference on Education taking place in Nairobi

Callistus Ogol, a senior education expert at the African Union (AU) department of human resources, science and technology, said that a digital revolution will strengthen efforts to tackle illiteracy in the world's second largest continent.

"Africa stands to reap from investments in high speed internet connection that will support virtual learning even in the remote corners of the continent," said Ogol.

He stressed the need for supportive policies, infrastructure and training of tutors to scale up digital learning in a continent grappling with high levels of illiteracy and skills deficiency.

African ministers, policymakers and scholars attending the three-day High Level Pan African Conference on Education agreed that information and communication technologies (ICT) are key to supporting continuous learning and skills development targeting the youth.

Ogol said e-learning has gained traction in many African countries thanks to political goodwill, abundance of skilled trainers and enthusiasm among the young generation.

Julius Jwan, the CEO of Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), said realization of education for all goal in Africa is dependent on harnessing of digital tools to promote learning.

"Our focus should be on rollout of infrastructure, content development and training of teachers to support virtual learning and bridge access gaps in education," Jwan said.

He noted that Kenya and Rwanda have pioneered transformative digital literacy programs to ensure the youth are equipped for the 21st century jobs.

Charlotte Oloya, the program manager of a Ugandan education charity, said that technology and innovations have promoted access to quality education among youth in resource-constrained settings.

"We need to explore innovative partnerships to ensure students have devices and schools are connected to promote digital learning," said Oloya.

Jaco Du Toit, the advisor for communications and information at UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa, said that enlightened policies coupled with public private partnerships are key to ensuring virtual learning is an integral part of Africa's quest to eliminate illiteracy. Enditem