Nigerian students seeking to study in the United States, Australia, and Europe have been handed a lifeline with a new partnership on the table.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), on Tuesday, November 8, entered a bilateral agreement with a US-based software company, Sonic Foundry, to foster distance learning for prospective masters and doctoral students on a scholarship basis.
Under its “Global Learning Exchange” (GLX) platform, the company will grant opportunities to thousands of Nigeria’s brightest students to access full-tuition scholarships in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and other parts of Europe.
Speaking at the press conference in Abuja, the president of the read and learn federation for UNESCO, Prince Abdulsalam Ladigbolu, said the partnership is aimed at developing a new education and skill training program for Nigerian youths in Nigeria through the TAP Category 2.9, which is under the United Nations goal 17 guidelines.
He disclosed that the initiative would enable Nigerian students and professionals to access various global education and skill sets.
Ladigbolu further noted that the partnership would allow Nigerian students to access technological hubs and facilities to aid proper learning and acquisition of skills.
He said:
“The partnership between UNESCO REF and Global Learning Exchange will support the launch of multiple GLX Hub facilities in Nigeria. These facilities will provide the youths with a positive study environment, technology access, and academic and career development support resources.”
Meanwhile, Joe Mozden, the CEO of Sonic Foundry, at the press briefing revealed that the GLX initiative has partnered with some universities in the United States and Europe to allow Nigerian students to have variety in making choices.
When asked about the criteria that qualify a student for the GLX scholarship, Joe said:
“There is a National assessment test when vision using something similar to that if not the Nigerian test that would be part of that.
“Also part of qualifying would be that the students would have the willingness and commitment to take on this journey because it is a hard long journey of education and so those are some of the things we see as requirements to criteria but the student doesn’t have to figure that on their own.”
Joe also disclosed that the GLX initiative is in phases while noting that aside from granting students a quality education, the initiative envisions granting some of the best graduating students job opportunities and recommendations.
He said:
“My ultimate goal is to provide job opportunities, people go to school, yes to learn but they really go to school to get a job.
“So what we envision as part of our future phases on GLX is to bring in employers into the program so that you go to any emerging company and there are US multi National companies like Deloitte consulting firms that do not have enough highly educated employees in the country and we want to marry those two so that a student will complete GLX, we will help broker if not create an entrée point into employment.”
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