The Lagos State Film and Video Censors Board has announced plans to promote ethical use of artificial intelligence in storytelling among students across the state, through its maiden Lagos Youth Storytelling Competition.

The Executive Secretary of the board, Adebukola Agbanimoja, advocated this at a press conference held at the agency’s office in the Ikosi area of the state on Thursday. She stressed that it was necessary to inculcate ethical AI usage due to the challenges its unregulated use posed for the censoring board.

According to her, the competition, which targets students between the ages of 13 and 20, aims to put the participants in the right direction of harnessing AI tools in telling good stories about the state and Nigeria at large.

We are witnessing a quiet but seismic shift in the way work, value, and relevance are defined. This is evident in the growing pressure within tech spaces and the quiet concern among students preparing for a future that’s evolving faster than anyone anticipated. Artificial intelligence is not just advancing; it is accelerating. And with it comes a fundamental reordering of what makes us valuable as tech professionals.

Most of the public conversation around AI has focused on the obvious: job losses at the entry level, the automation of repetitive tasks, and the need for upskilling. But that conversation, while not wrong, is incomplete. The people most at risk in this new world may not be the interns or junior hires.

The real disruption is coming for the people we often think of as the safest, the deeply skilled, long-standing technical experts. Why? AI is not replacing jobs in a linear fashion. It’s replacing tasks. And the tasks it replaces first are often the very ones we’ve spent years celebrating: writing efficient code, solving logic problems, analysing data sets, and draughting documentation.

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has announced plans to establish 68 innovation hubs in universities. Speaking when a delegation from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) visited the agency’s headquarters in Abuja, Executive Secretary, TETFund, Sonny Echono, said UNDP projects like innovation, skills development, and structural reform align with the fund’s ongoing interventions.

Echono added that TETFund is currently supporting over 60 innovation hubs in the country’s tertiary institutions, and plans to scale up to 68 hubs this year, integrating them with UNDP-supported centres for greater impact.

“We started with 18 and are scaling to 68 this year. We’re replicating a model in Abuja in partnership with Israeli start-ups, and we’re working with our institutions to integrate local industries, like Panteka in Kaduna, and Computer Village in Lagos, for practical training. This aligns perfectly with your eight hubs and allows us to coalesce our efforts,” he stated.

Worried by the increasing number of out-of-school children in the country, education stakeholders and lawmakers yesterday gathered in Lagos for a two-day legislative retreat aimed at amending the Universal Basic Education (UBE) Act.

The retreat, organised by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), brought together members of the National Assembly’s Committee on Basic Education, state education commissioners, and development partners to re-evaluate gaps in the 20-year-old law, and propose reforms to reposition the sector for better service delivery.

UBEC Executive Secretary, Aisha Garba, described the retreat as a timely intervention in addressing Nigeria’s foundational education crisis. The retreat forms part of UBEC’s 2020–2030 roadmap, which focuses on expanding access, improving learning quality, and reforming financing structures across Nigeria’s basic education system.

The Federal Ministry of Education has launched the “Edu Revamp” Communities of Practice (CoPs), a strategic initiative aimed at transforming education delivery and professional collaboration in Nigerian schools.

The launch marked the beginning of a focused capacity-building workshop for 80 selected teachers and ministry staff. Declaring the event opened, the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, said the initiative is a milestone in the collective journey to revamp the sector.

She said the CoPs, which fall under the Quality Education and Learning Outcomes Initiative, aim to create learning communities, hubs of shared knowledge, and platforms for sustainable teacher professional development.

The Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr. Aisha Garba, on Tuesday hosted a team from the World Bank, including the new Team Task Lead for the HOPE-EDU programme, as part of preparatory engagements to ensure effective implementation of the education initiative.

HOPE-EDU, a $552 million basic education programme co-financed by the World Bank and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), is aimed at improving learning outcomes, expanding access to quality basic education, and strengthening education systems across Nigeria. The programme targets 29 million children, 500,000 teachers, 65,000 public schools, and 10,000 non-formal learning centres nationwide.

The meeting, held in Abuja, provided a platform for both parties to align on immediate priorities, discuss eligibility requirements, and map out the technical support required to drive progress. Speaking after the meeting, Dr. Garba emphasised the significance of the engagement, saying it was a critical step towards ensuring that the programme delivers results where they are needed most.

In a bold move to expand access to quality digital education, the Olamilokun Foundation has partnered with Miva Open University to offer full undergraduate scholarships to exceptional students pursuing degrees in digital technology.

The initiative, which kicked off with the September 2024 admission cycle, is set to be a yearly commitment, with new students joining the program annually and receiving full tuition support until graduation. The partnership, already gaining national attention, reflects a shared mission between both institutions: to empower Nigeria’s youth with the future-ready skills needed to thrive in a digital economy.

The first cohort of beneficiaries, selected from underserved communities, are now enrolled at Miva’s School of Computing, where they will earn degrees in fields such as Software Engineering, Data Science, and Cybersecurity.

The Federal Government on Wednesday announced plans to launch a portal to deepen global collaboration with Nigerian tertiary institutions. A statement by the Federal Ministry of Education signed by the Director of Press, Folasade Boriowo, said the portal aims to allow Nigerian researchers, academics from diaspora to connect with Nigerian higher institutions.

The portal will be launched on Monday, July 28, 2025, by the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima, alongside the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Alausa. “The Diaspora BRIDGE, an acronym for Bridging Research, Innovation, Development, and Global Engagement, is a strategic digital initiative designed to connect Nigerian professionals and academics in the diaspora with tertiary education and research institutions across the country.

It is part of the Ministry’s broader agenda to foster innovation, strengthen institutional capacity, and position Nigeria’s education sector as a hub for global knowledge exchange. “The platform will enable diaspora experts to register their profiles, highlight areas of specialisation, and collaborate directly with Nigerian universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, and research institutions.

The University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) has taken a bold step toward expanding its academic and research frontiers with the establishment of a fully operational directorate for grants and scholarships. The acting vice chancellor of the university, Prof. Oguejiofor Ujam, who stated this during a press briefing to mark its 54th convocation ceremony, said that the directorate is aimed at mobilising funding and fostering global academic exchange.

Ujam announced that the newly created directorate is now serving as a central hub for generating and administering scholarships and research grants.“Today, that dream has been realised,” Ujam said. “This directorate now coordinates vital funding opportunities for both undergraduate and postgraduate students—not only from Nigeria but also from across Africa, Asia, and Europe.

The aim is to build a truly global academic community within our university.” According to him, the university has already reached out to individuals, corporate bodies, and international organisations to secure partnerships and funding, with tangible results beginning to materialise.

Enugu State Commissioner for Education Prof. Ndubueze Mbah has disclosed that the state’s Smart Green School initiative is attracting impressive support from international development agencies, donor organisations, and Nigerian diaspora communities. He stated that the programme is widely supported and locally embraced in the state.

Mbah, who spoke recently in Lagos, said that the Enugu Smart Green Schools are not merely physical structures but hubs of integrated learning, community empowerment, and sustainable development.
“We are supported by prestigious grants and leading education sector partner.

UNICEF, UNESCO, the World Bank, the Federal Ministry of Education, the Universal Basic Education Commission, and numerous international foundations are all backing this effort. Our people in the diaspora are also lending their support. It’s not just a government project—it’s a movement.”

A microfinance institution, Grooming Centre Nigeria, has disclosed that its university research grants are given to indigent students in both public and private tertiary institutions nationwide, with priority given to research projects that can solve societal problems and lead to poverty reduction in the country.

The Head of Special Projects at the Centre, Mr Egulefu Chikezie, gave this hint on Tuesday in Lagos at a news conference to announce the commencement of application submissions by students for this year’s edition of the annual scholarship scheme, now in its seventh year.

He noted that a total of 543 students, comprising 11 PhD candidates and 532 other students at the HND, undergraduate, and master’s degree levels, have so far benefited from the scheme since it was launched six years ago as part of the company’s social intervention efforts in education development and poverty reduction.

Adeleke Adesina, a life and business system coach at Tregs consulting has called professors, lecturers, and academicians to have a strong digital presence on LinkedIn, to showcase research work to attract global collaborations, funding and mentor students in the language of digital professionalism.

He noted this during a workshop themed: ‘Future-ready faculties: Skilling for global workforce preparedness’ at the Arthur Mbanefo digital research centre in the University of Lagos in celebration of the World Skills Day hosted by the university’s career development service (UNILAG-OCDS).

On a broader scale Adesina explained this will cause institutional visibility, helping universities showcase their intellectual capital to broader audiences, he noted. “Visibility leads to opportunity,” he said, offering 12 practical strategies on Linkedin for academic professionals.