Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced that Ethiopia’s first-ever artificial intelligence (AI) university will become operational next Ethiopian year, a major milestone in the country’s technological and educational development, reports ENA.

Addressing members of the House of People’s Representatives, the prime minister underscored that Ethiopia is fast-tracking the development of artificial intelligence as part of its national reform agenda, expanding investments in technology, digital skills and innovation to boost the country’s global competitiveness.

He added that while artificial intelligence has yet to become a central agenda in many African countries – and even in several governments worldwide, Ethiopia has moved swiftly to institutionalise the sector. Abiy revealed that construction is underway on the large-scale AI university, described as the second largest of its kind in the world, and confirmed that the institution is progressing rapidly towards becoming functional within months.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB)’s recent announcement of new monitoring measures, age eligibility rules, and registration timelines for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) has reignited debate about when and how young Nigerians should enter university.

While policymakers focus on tightening admission rules, a deeper question must be asked: are Nigeria’s education and labour systems genuinely preparing young people for the jobs we need and the opportunities they desire, both now and in the future?

By law, a child becomes an adult at eighteen. Under labour standards, this age marks the point at which a young person should be sufficiently skilled to participate meaningfully in economic life. In fact, the basis for the 6 3 3 4 education system that we practice is that if a child starts primary school at six, they should be able to engage in economic activities 12 years later , even without tertiary education.

According to the Koa Academy Kenya Online Schooling Research, while 80 percent of parents are aware of online learning options, only nine percent have enrolled their children.

The report attributes the low uptake to perceptions shaped during Covid-19 emergency learning, with many parents associating online schooling with weak supervision, inconsistency, and social isolation rather than viewing it as a credible full-time alternative.

The research identifies social isolation as one of the biggest concerns among parents. It notes that daily peer interaction, continuous teacher engagement, structured feedback, online clubs, Nairobi-based meetups, and educational outings help build student engagement and a sense of community.

A Professor of Organic Chemistry at the Federal University, Lokoja (FUL), Isah Yinusa, has called on the federal government to formulate a policy that will support strategic and long-term national funding for high-risk exploratory research and the development of shared, cutting-edge screening platforms.

Yinusa, who made the call while delivering the 38th inaugural lecture of the institution, said the government must foster public-private partnerships and incentivise industries to invest in translating natural products, which could lead to tangible applications in health, food security, and sustainable manufacturing.

“By embracing this holistic approach where academic rigour, supportive policy, and ethical stewardship converge, we can ensure the legacy of natural product research endures. In doing so, we harness one of our planet’s most profound resources: the power of nature’s chemistry, responsibly unlocked, to build a healthier and more sustainable future for all,” he stated.

The National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) has begun a comprehensive review of the NCE minimum standards and curriculum to strengthen teacher education. The Executive Secretary of NCCE, Prof. Paulinus Okwelle, disclosed this at the commencement of the review.

Okwelle said the review would address identified gaps, align teacher preparation with national priorities, global education trends, and practical realities facing colleges of education. He explained that the exercise brought together teacher educators, policymakers, practitioners, and development partners to enrich the review outcomes through shared expertise.

According to him, the revised curriculum will integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital competencies to prepare teachers for technology-driven classrooms and the future of work. “This forward-looking approach will position Nigerian teachers to operate confidently in technology-rich classrooms and align their preparation with international best practices and national development aspirations,” he said.

The Federal Government is shifting education system towards a youth-led and digital skills-driven model as part of ongoing reforms in the sector. But some stakeholders warned that such digital literacy initiatives are not moving in the direction of equipping students with the required digital and country-specific skills. Nigeria’s education system, they said, needs a deliberate shift in focus, prioritising skills that drive national growth, Assistant Editor Bola Olajuwon reports

Statistics indicate that millions of Nigerian youth lack digital literacy, and only 11% of graduates possess formal digital training in an age where coding, data science, AI, UI/UX design, cloud computing, and digital marketing are in high demand. Experts believe that with half the population under 20, providing these skills is critical for national development and international employability.

Many stakeholders blamed inadequate infrastructure, limited internet access (only 36% coverage), and outdated curricula as hindering digital training. These and other systemic issues, combined with inadequate digital infrastructure, are leaving millions of Nigerian children without access to quality education and the digital skills needed for the future.

Reforms aimed at improving research quality and strengthening doctoral training in Cameroon have had a lukewarm response from academics and students who are concerned about limited admission quotas. The ministry of higher education announced changes in the country’s doctoral education programme during January.

“The new framework introduced targeted reforms to address lapses that led to the suspension of PhD admissions in state universities in 2023,” a ministerial news release said. According to the release, applicants must possess a research masters degree or equivalent in fundamental or applied fields; professional or technological masters degrees are excluded.

A candidate should have obtained a minimum grade of C+ for the masters study, an entry requirement that cannot be lowered, although institutions may raise the threshold based on programme needs, available places and capacity.

Higher education collaborations between Africa and China are poised to expand this year, building on the momentum generated by the designation of 2026 as the Year of People-to-People Exchanges between the two regions. A range of activities form part of the exchanges, including key initiatives in higher education and science.

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced a series of flagship developmental initiatives related to Africa for the year of people exchanges. Additionally, the programme will feature the Training Programme on Chinese Modernisation and African Development, the African Literary Works Translation and Publication Project, and the China-Africa Innovation Cooperation and Development Forum.

These include the annual meeting of the China-Africa University Alliance Exchange Mechanism and China-Africa University Presidents Forum; the China-Africa Technical and Vocational Education and Training Cooperation Plan; a training programme on biodiversity conservation; an educational empowerment programme for African women entrepreneurs; a youth innovation and entrepreneurship competition; and a series of activities at Confucius Institutes in Africa.

The Federal Government has earmarked the sum of N21 billion for online learning for secondary schools and perimeter fencing of 118 Federal Unity Colleges across the country in 2026. A breakdown of the amount contained in the 2026 budget indicated that while N14 billion was allocated to the perimeter fencing of schools, N7 billion was earmarked for online learning in public secondary schools.

The projects, tagged as ongoing, are being executed by the Federal Ministry of Education under the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP). The N7 billion proposed for online learning represents a 63.2 per cent reduction from the N10 billion allocated for the same purpose in the 2025 budget.

Specifically, the virtual proposal was tagged ‘Online Classroom Platform for Secondary Schools,’ while the other project was titled ‘Provision of Security Infrastructure in 118 Unity Colleges: Perimeter Fencing.’ Last year, the government launched a countrywide programme designed to expand equitable access to online learning.

Google, alongside leading African universities and community organizations, has launched WAXAL, a groundbreaking open speech dataset aimed at making artificial intelligence finally understand and speak African languages.

The project is a big step toward closing one of AI’s most overlooked gaps: language access. While voice assistants and speech-powered tech are everywhere globally, most of Africa’s 2,000+ languages have been left out due to a lack of quality speech data.

That exclusion affects hundreds of millions of people. Built over three years with funding from Google, the dataset includes 1,250 hours of transcribed natural speech and over 20 hours of studio-quality recordings, covering 21 Sub-Saharan African languages such as Yoruba, Hausa, Luganda, Acholi, Igbo, Swahili, and more. In total, it lays the foundation for AI tools that could reach over 100 million speakers across the continent.

Sahara Group has reinforced its push for sustainable development and human capital growth in Africa with the award of a total of $36,000 under its Making A Difference Grant initiative to three academics of the University of Lagos.

The beneficiaries, Prof. Sunday Adebisi, Dr Victor Odumuyiwa and Prof. Abdul-Hameed Sulaimon, were selected in the second edition of the grant, which focuses on addressing youth unemployment, digital inclusion and institutional governance.

According to a statement by Sahara Group’s Head of Corporate Communications, Bethel Obioma, each awardee received $12,000 to scale projects that Sahara Group said have demonstrated measurable impact and strong potential for replication.

The World Bank Group said it has committed over $2.5 billion to Nigerian suppliers over the past five years, funding projects across infrastructure, healthcare, and education. Equally, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) said it mobilised $5 billion in private capital last year to support businesses and create jobs in the country.

The seminar, organised by the World Bank Group, aimed to showcase procurement and investment opportunities under its projects, while promoting SME participation, transparency, and capacity building in public procurement across sub-Saharan Africa, encouraging businesses both in Nigeria and beyond to compete for available contracts.

Also speaking at the seminar, the Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Dr. Chinyere Almona, noted that the high cost of finance was among the bottlenecks hindering SMEs’ participation in the procurement process. Almona said that it was often difficult for banks to grant facilities to SMEs.