Education partnership centre targets Nigeria’s poor

As part of the strategic plans to deepen access to quality education in Nigeria, The Education Partnership Centre (TEP centre) has established a centre for Education Innovations (CEI) in Nigeria and commenced examining of emerging innovative models within the education space that hold promise for Nigeria’s poor.

Mo Adefose-Olateju, Managing Director, TEP Centre while speaking at the launch of the centre in Lagos said The Centre for Education Innovations (CEI) initiative is a nonprofit DFID-funded initiative to improve access to education in the developing countries using innovative programmes targeted at the poor.

Olateju pointed out that there are significant gaps in the global understanding of the benefits of such programmes which are due to lack of systematic and easy-to-access information about such programmes around the world.

She disclosed that to achieve the require goals of the programmes involves identifying, analysing and connecting non-state innovative programmes that improve the quality and affordability of education in Nigeria.

According to her, “TEP Centre is collecting more information on innovative models that will be reviewed and subsequently get the chance of being included in a rich and interactive online database. This will give users the ability to compare data across geography as well as specific program components”

She further disclosed that the programme aims to support policy makers, funders and programme implementers in their efforts to improve and better harness the potential of the non-state sector to achieve educational goals.

According to Olateju, it is against this background the TEP Centre will properly harness innovations in education that have the potential to significantly increase access to quality education for Nigeria’s poor.

“Also through its prominence and a large network of stakeholders within the education sector, TEP centre has gathered that government, non-governmental organisations and social enterprise are among those pioneering new innovations, technologies, systems and financing mechanisms that specifically targets the most vulnerable,” she said.

“The centre is also keeping an eye open to partner with organisations that are showing concern to alleviate failure in the Primary school, secondary schools and tertiary institutions” she said.

She further explained that the Centre for Education innovation is an initiative of results for development institute and relies on a broad network of regional partners and collaborators adding that with the establishment of CEI in Nigeria, the country joins a global network of CEI Hubs located in East Africa, South Africa and India.

Olugbolade Oshodi, representative of My Learning Academy, an education programme on the mobile plate on MTN said he is excited about the programme as it will help find organisations, profile them and improve capacity to help the children.

KELECHI EWUZIE / IFEOMA OKEKE