CSEC calls for corporate support to EdTech
The Civil Society Education Coalition (CSEC) has called for inclusion of support to education technology (EdTech) in coordinated Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities of the corporate entities supporting the education sector in Malawi.
CSEC Board Chairperson, Dr. Limbani Nsapato, justified the lack of CSR support to EdTech by, among others, citing the Malawi Education Statistics (EMIS) Report of 2022, which states that only 1.2 percent and two percent of the schools offer lessons in ICT and have connection to internet, respectively.
Nsapato made the sentiments Thursday in Lilongwe during a private sector engagement meeting, focusing on responsive corporate social responsibility through EdTech in Malawi.
CSEC is a strong proponent of EdTech as a solution to the problem of learning poverty—a situation where learners go to school, but spend most of their time there without learning due to poor quality of teachers and unavailability of resources, among other factors.
Learning poverty is very high in Malawi, at 87 percent.
Nsapato said the gaps exposed by EMIS means there is limited access to technology and the Ministry of Education has limited funding to invest in the sector, especially EdTech.
“We feel the private sector can bridge and minimize these gaps by making their contributions towards investment in EdTech, leading to improved access and quality of education services.
“If Malawi has limited access, it means the country is limiting the capacity of its human resource that is needed to ensure socio-economic development.
“Therefore, various stakeholders, including the private sector, need to play their rightful roles to ensure access and build the human power needed to engineer the development that is required in the Malawi 2063, among other agenda”.
Employers Consultative Association of Malawi Executive Director, George Khaki, welcomed the call for the corporate sector to invest in EdTech, saying it will do the nation good.
“Even the private sector needs educated personnel for their activities to become sustainable. It is, therefore, in the interest of the sector to invest in EdTech so that citizens are well capacitated to work”.
Alliance One Tobacco Corporate Affairs Manager, Fran Malila, concurred with Khaki, adding that there is need for more synergies within the private sector—sugar, tea and tobacco—to closely work together in investing in EdTech.
“It is an exciting venture, especially when we will decide to implement it in some rural areas where we work. Otherwise our focus was on building and maintaining schools and providing desks”.
Director of Secondary Education, Florida Banda, said the Ministry of Education expects the strengthening of coordination of CSR activities with the corporate sector to ensure that the players’ investments achieve their objectives.
She added the Ministry has already shown commitment by, among others, setting up a directorate of Open Distance and E-learning which is also handling issues of EdTech and embarking on establishing science and technology laboratories in some schools.
CSEC held the engagement meeting in collaboration with its distinguished partners such as Oxfam, Save the Children, Teachers Union of Malawi, World Vision International, Girls Activist Youth Organization, FAWEMA and Action Aid Malawi.
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