The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and the United Nations International Emergency Fund (UNICEF) have today launched the Learning Passport, a mobile platform that addresses challenges in accessing continued, quality education in times of crisis and when access is limited to traditional learning.
The platform powered by Microsoft launches in Zimbabwe at a time when over 4.6 million Zimbabwean learners have been out of school for extended periods due to the COVID-19.
Primary and Secondary Education Minister, Cain Mathema said, “The Learning Passport has arrived when Government has launched its National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) which focuses on initiatives around inclusive education as well as innovative technologies that support alternative learning approaches from Early Childhood Development upward,” said the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education.”
“As such, the Learning Passport in Zimbabwe will support the implementation of the NDS1 as well as go a long way in supporting the catch-up strategy for the formal school curriculum.”
Learning Passport was originally designed to provide education for displaced and refugee children through a digital remote learning platform.
A collaboration between UNICEF and Microsoft is expanding to more countries and offers country-level curriculum for children and youth.
UNICEF Zimbabwe Representative Laylee Moshiri said, “It is a new solution designed to close the learning gap – a tech platform enabling high quality, flexible learning.”
“The Learning Passport is a key innovation meant to enhance learning pathways while providing critical continuous access to quality education.”
The Learning Passport can both work online and offline.
John Edokpolo, Corporate External Legal Affairs Lead of Middle East & Africa -Multi Country Cluster, Microsoft said, “The Learning Passport creates a unique opportunity for young people to continue their studies regardless of their location or where they are on their education journey.”
