EdTech guests discussed different initiatives to improve access to technology in education. Photos/Eric Ruzindana.
Stakeholders in the education technology (EdTech) ecosystem have shown that current gaps in improving access to connectivity and infrastructure in remote areas, to realize Rwanda’s EdTech potential, can be bridged by creating affordable and accessible technology for all.
Reports on the EdTech Landscape in Rwanda shows that only 27% of rural schools have access to the internet, compared to 75% in urban areas and only 40% of schools in remote areas report having adequate infrastructure to support reliable digital learning environments.
Cyprien Bunani, Chief Executive Officer of Education Development Consult acknowledged the current gaps between the rural and urban schools especially in increasing access despite efforts to increase access to internet infrastructure and electricity in schools.
“This access gap can be resolved by using affordable technology such as feature (USSD) phones where that tech based education content can be accessible to all, instead of using computers, tablets and smartphones of which the majority don’t possess,” Bunani said.
Bunani was speaking during the EdTech Monday October 2024 episode themed “increasing access to connectivity and infrastructure in schools in remote areas” which aired on KTradio, and streamed live on KigaliToday YouTube channel (link) this October 28.
The EdTech Monday episode, sponsored by Mastercard Foundation in collaboration with Rwanda ICT Chambers, was also attended by other Panelists-Dei Francois Audace, Embedded System Developer at Keza education future lab and Theoneste Ndayisenga, Founder & CEO Global Nexus Institute.
Theoneste Ndayisenga, Founder & CEO
Global Nexus Institute
Responding to the need for EdTech solutions tailored to address the unique needs of schools in remote areas, especially when it comes to limited access, Keza education future lab (KEFL), a learning platform that powers young kids of 3 to 14 years of age to become future innovators using technology by transforming learned theories into tech based solutions, is focusing their activities on rural schools instead of urban ones.
However, Dei Francois Audace, the Embedded System Developer at KEFL said that the current challenge is seen in rural schools which still lack enough computers for students (in smart classrooms) and even the existing ones are not used on a daily basis by either the pupils or the teachers.
Bunani said that even with the limited infrastructure, there is still a need to build a culture of using technology in schools instead of stockpiling unused computers in schools.
“There is an appetite for using technology but we see that there is a need for beneficiaries to own these programs and not use the computers only when visited by an official,” Bunani said.
Cyprien Bunani, Chief Executive Officer, Education Development Consult
Responding to this challenge, Bunani said that the private sector is engaged in improving access and promoting use of affordable tech driven solutions to implement the government agenda of becoming a middle income economy by 2050.
Theoneste Ndayisenga, Founder & CEO Global Nexus Institute, which trains and equips adults and secondary school graduates with ICT skills (data science, analytics) and planning to add artificial intelligence and cyber security on the menu, said that they are expanding their online platform to reach more beneficiaries in remote areas in Rwanda.
To ensure that both students and teachers in remote areas have the necessary digital skills to effectively use new technologies and infrastructure, the panelists called for enforcement to ensure that the existing infrastructure is used appropriately.
The panelists and listeners said that if Rwanda is to reach its technology goals, there is need to deal with the negligence and resistance to adapt to technology, especially among teachers.
Listeners said that if teachers are trained and able to shift to using technology in their lessons, students will easily get interested, acquainted with learning and use the available ICT facilities.
DEI Francois Audace, KEZA EDUCATION FUTURE LAB, Embedded System Developer
Show host, Ines Ghislaine Nyinawumuntu.
