What I Am Doing to RISE Above the Pandemic

Humanity has survived many nasty and horrific experiences in the past. From epidemics and pandemics to World Wars, armed conflict, threat of nuclear warfare, natural and man-made disasters. Because such challenges force us to think differently, surmounting them has always sparked positive shifts in mass consciousness and societal structure, governance reforms, innovations in many sectors and enormous improvements in the way we do things.

My name is Obiora Ubadigbo. I am a Financial Analyst and Digital Literacy Lead for EduTrust Foundation, a social enterprise that is driving innovation in the education sector and expanding access to quality education to reach underserved and unserved communities in Nigeria.

EduTrust Foundation has been at the forefront of advocacy on Coronavirus even before concrete steps were taken by the Nigerian government to address the pandemic. Innovators and entrepreneurs have been in the business of disrupting the status quo long before COVID-19. With innovative thinking, my team at EduTrust Foundation recognized the need to pivot and adapt our strategy in the early days of the outbreak so that we can still achieve our goals.

Our advocacy on Likely Scenarios of COVID-19 in Nigeria in March 2020 informed action by the Committee on Defence of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Nigeria and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to respond to the pandemic. Since then, we have undertaken several advocacy, sensitization and action-oriented campaigns to keep the public informed, educated, prepared, productive, smart and safe and we intend to keep doing so. These include:

● ICT Skill Set Development Programme for Women in MSMEs, March 2020

● Interactive TweetChat Series and Q&A on Responding to COVID-19, March-April 2020

● Online Campaign tagged: 1000 Reasons to Be Positive Amidst #COVID19, April 2020

● Several Op-eds on #BeatingCovid19, launched in April-May 2020

● Live Video Conference + TweetChat Series on Digital Education during COVID-19, May 2020

● Updates from Africa and around the world on educational solutions during COVID-19  

● The EduTrust Challenge: “What Can You Do For Education?” June-October 2020.

A major deficit in our education sector which has been revealed by the pandemic is the lack of readiness by our schools at all levels to embrace and integrate digital learning platforms. Earlier in January 2020, EduTrust Foundation had discussions with the Principals/Managers of secondary schools in Anambra State and Nassarawa State to support the schools in setting up e-Library to make educational books and resources accessible, affordable, relatable and user-friendly for students, teachers and the school communities. At that time, no one had anticipated the far-reaching disruption to the education system wreaked by the pandemic.

To address the gap, we convened a weeklong TweetChat and live video conference in May tagged “Making Digital Education Work for Nigeria: Needed Reforms”. The conference brought together parents, teachers, students, development experts, lawmakers, policymakers and citizens to delve deep into the challenges and articulate solutions. We are building on all the contributions, suggestions and solutions to produce a SOLUTIONS PAPER which we will share with everyone, stakeholders in education, and relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies in Nigeria as part of our advocacy.

Furthermore, by launching The EduTrust Challenge on 1st June, we are stepping up on our commitment to transform education, change attitudes and inspire action by challenging youths and grassroots organizations to draw on their motivations, skills and talents in leading a small project that will promote quality education and have impact in their community notwithstanding the challenge of COVID-19. We are doing this because we believe that education cannot wait!

The EduTrust Challenge echoes the epic challenge made by President John F. Kennedy to American citizens during his inauguration: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country”. For decades, that statement has resonated as a call to civic action. Ten (10) women and youths will be selected for the challenge and supported to design, implement and showcase their own small project. Winners will be announced on 30th July.

Our young and dynamic team continues to work unhindered via online and virtual platforms. In the case of projects and outreach which involve contact and interaction with the public, we take all necessary precautions recommended by national health authorities to protect both ourselves and the public. In addition, we seek collaboration with public, private, corporate, social, community-based and nongovernmental organizations to expand the scope and impact of our work in response to the current pandemic and beyond.

Happily, we all are learning from many success stories during these challenging times to create better responses, treatments, attitudes, habits, culture and innovations. Trusting in human ingenuity, I know that we will not only beat Coronavirus, we will RISE from it better and stronger!

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