The Kwara State Government officially launched a Coding and Digital Literacy training programme on Tuesday, targeting at least 50 public primary and junior secondary schools across the state.

The initiative, organised by the Office of the Special Assistant to the Governor on Digital and Innovation, Hon. Ishola Kayode, aims to equip students with foundational digital skills. Senior Adviser and Counsellor to Governor AbdulRahman Abdulrazaq, Alhaji Sa'adu Salau, officiated the flag-off ceremony on behalf of the governor.

Alhaji Salau highlighted that the programme aligns with the administration's focus on modernising education, stating: “This digital coding initiative strengthens our impactful investments in the education sector to prepare students for the demands of the 21st century.”

The pilot scheme will initially engage over 150 students in each of the 50 selected schools, providing training in coding fundamentals and digital literacy. The state government aims to expand the initiative to additional schools in future phases.

"We are now faced with the reality of the digital revolution. So, what we have done today is to flag-off the training for digital literacy in 50 schools in Kwara State," he said at the symbolic launch at the Bishop's Smith Junior Secondary School Ilorin.

“It is our expectation that with the foundation laying of a digital society for this generation, the children of Kwara State would not lag behind among their counterparts globally.”

Other public schools in the capital city where the pilot scheme launched included Queen Elizabeth School, Ilorin Grammar School, and Sheikh Alimi L.G.E.A Primary school.

Hon. Ishola, for his part, said the programme was to ensure that public school students are not lagging behind in the digital world.

"They should be digitally literate, they should be able to solve problems in their communities because the problems can be solved with the knowledge of technology and if you don't have that knowledge, you can't actually solve the problems,” he said.

“The selection of 50 schools was to serve as a pilot scheme. 15 schools are selected from Kwara Central, 13 from North, while 22 are picked from the southern part of the state.” He said the programme will be expanded after the data driven assessment.

Principal of Bishop's Smith College (Junior Session), Mrs Akanbi Janet Ayoola, said the project is one of the best decisions the Governor has taken in the era where information Technology and artificial intelligence have become a necessity of life.

Opadili Dorcas Boluwatife and Akinola Kolawole Abdulrahman, among other students who spoke at the ceremony, thanked the state government for the initiative.

They promised to make good use of the opportunity that they said would enable them to compete favourably with their counterparts globally in the digital revolution.