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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Technology

Huawei, NCCE Partner to Expand AI, Digital Education in Nigeria

From The Punch · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Huawei and the National Commission for Colleges of Education in Nigeria have signed an agreement to expand artificial intelligence and digital education.
  • The partnership, formalized at the Huawei Education Summit, aims to equip Nigerian graduates and institutions for a digital and AI-driven economy.
  • The collaboration will establish a Digital Academy for continuous training and includes curriculum updates in AI, robotics, data science, and cybersecurity.

Huawei Technologies Nigeria and the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) have partnered to boost artificial intelligence and digital education across Nigeria. The agreement, signed Thursday at the third Huawei Education Summit in Abuja, seeks to prepare Nigerian graduates and institutions for a global economy increasingly shaped by AI and digital technologies.

Universities and colleges must equip students with practical digital skills and innovative mindsets so they can compete globally.

— Jim ZhangDeputy Managing Director of Huawei Technologies Nigeria, speaking at the Huawei Education Summit.

Jim Zhang, Deputy Managing Director of Huawei Technologies Nigeria, emphasized the transformative impact of emerging technologies like AI, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. He stated that educational institutions must adapt by equipping students with practical digital skills and innovative mindsets for global competitiveness. The summit itself gathered education leaders, university administrators, government officials, and tech experts to discuss these strategies.

The NCCE's Executive Secretary, Dr. Angela Ajala, highlighted Huawei's role as a reliable partner, noting that many lecturers and students have earned ICT certifications through the Huawei ICT Academy Programme. This renewed partnership will establish a Digital Academy within the NCCE to offer ongoing training for educators, students, and other stakeholders. Ajala stressed the importance of ensuring no Nigerian child's future is limited by their teacher's exposure to technology.

Our job is to ensure that no Nigerian child’s future depends on whether their teacher happens to have encountered technology.

— Dr Angela AjalaExecutive Secretary of the National Commission for Colleges of Education, discussing the partnership's impact.

In line with this, the NCCE has updated its curriculum to include specialized programs in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Education, Networking and Cybersecurity Education, Data Science and Analytics Education, and Software and Web Development. The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) also announced an increased funding allocation for ICT, recognizing it as a strategic priority. Joseph Odo, Director of ICT at TETFUND, stated that universities will receive ₦150 million and polytechnics/colleges of education ₦100 million to enhance digital systems, capacity building, and public-private collaborations.

TETFUND now regards ICT as a strategic priority rather than a support function and has increased funding to ₦150 million for universities and ₦100 million for polytechnics and colleges of education.

— Joseph OdoDirector of Information and Communication Technology at the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, on increased ICT funding.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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