Phase3 Telecom Boosts eLearning in Nigeria

Phase3 Telecom, West Africa’s leading Aerial Fibre Infrastructure Company, has made a bold statement in the education sector of Nigeria with the provision of broadband connectivity to several primary, secondary, and tertiary schools in Nigeria.

Recently, Phase3 Telecom provided broadband internet and Wi-fi connectivity to Baze University, Abuja.

Stanley Jegede, CEO of Phase3 Telecom, said that the ability of the Nigerian student to go beyond the knowledge of their teachers through research via eBooks and eLibrary is the cultural shift that takes education from the conventional platform of lecture and teacher focused education to a more open collaborate approach that reaches beyond school hours, beyond classroom walls, and between geographically dispersed locations.”

He added that the company has plans to increase the role of ICT in many schools especially in the rural parts of Nigeria by providing high speed broadband connectivity via their Open Access Network.

The company provides broadband connectivity to, amongst others, Spring Hall British School, Cradle to Crayon School, Centagon International School and The Regent Secondary School in Abuja.

Education is one of the main instruments for repositioning Nigeria’s global status in science and technology.

The Information Technology Association of Nigeria (ITAN) and the Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) signed an agreement to influence critical government policies at all levels with regards to the Information and Communication Technology at all levels, which includes education.

The associations stated that much needs to be done in the area of provision of modern elementary science laboratories and ICT facilities in the primary, secondary, and tertiary schools around the country.

“I see Baze University setting standards for excellence in this part of the world. Currently, no Nigerian University is rated in the top 5,000 in the world. Many Nigerians thus feel compelled to send their sons and daughters to be educated abroad.

We are determined to deliver the same quality of education that many of these high ranking schools offer abroad. The need to raise the education standard in the country led us to partner with Phase3 Telecom for high-speed and high-capacity internet connectivity so that Baze University students can experience online research and eLearning as do the students in quality schools abroad”, the Founder and Pro-Chancellor of Baze University, Sen. Datti Yusuf Baba-Ahmed PhD, boldly stated.

Quite simply, eLearning is all about learning that occurs at the computer. The eLearning techniques mostly adopted by a majority of Nigerian institutions today ar

e in form of prepared lectures on a CD-ROM that can be uploaded and played when needed. This has limited advantages.

One major disadvantage of this technique is that students are deprived of the rich and diverse information that can be sourced from a reliable broadband connection.

Phase3 Telecom’s large bandwidth capacity network has grown a reputation for providing reliable broadband services to large and small business enterprises via Optic Fibre cables deployed over high voltage power lines.

The company’s goal for 2013 is to, amongst others, improve the learning experience of the Nigerian child by connecting its robust and reliable internet network to more Nigerian schools.

 There’s still so much to be done as regards ICT facilities in the Nigerian education sector.

This digital gap led to the company’s plan to partner with the Federal Ministry of Education to build a digital bridge for schools in line with the Nigerian Broadband Roadmap.