Broadcasting
Technology Will Support, Complement Teachers’ Efforts-Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji
By chukwuemeka fred agbata
Massive open online courses have made it easy for people to gain access to quality education materials and training designed for international audiences. Thankfully, a few Startups in the Edutech space, are creating similar platforms, targeted at Primary and Secondary school students. Recently, I was with Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji, Founder, Passnownow.com and we had a discussion on the provision of quality education, through technology.
Toyosi stated that she is worried about the poor state of education that is currently persisting in the country. This, according to her, is the because, we are looking for people to effectively and conscientiously run our private sector as well as take the reign of the public sector. “We are not raising children that have any form of qualitative advantage with their colleagues in other parts of the world”, she, however, observed.
She is not also happy wit on the part of the government and even on the part of the private sector players, as regards elevating the quality of education, especially, the teachers. “I will like to be in a country where teachers are highly paid, given equal remuneration, equal respect and regards as much as bankers, lawyers and other prestigious professionals are”, she maintained.
Toyosi observed that most people who opt to become teachers in Nigeria, are usually those who have searched for other jobs, but did not succeed, as well as many unqualified teachers, who are, in some cases, not as good as the students they are teaching.
She also stated that many of the teachers are not motivated and they do not feel like stakeholders in a process where they are supposed to be the most primary people to be consulted by the government, parents and the private sector. “You think about all these issues and then, you wonder about the quality of the schools. You think about the children that are learning and sitting on the floor in very terrible environment, where no form of unwholesome learning can happen in those places”, she observed.
Those children, she reiterated, cannot, therefore, be put side by side with children from Ghana, UK, Finland, Canada and the USA, and other countries that are prioritizing education. She gave the example of what is currently happening in Rwanda, where private schools are shutting down because parents are now taking their children to public schools because of the high quality of education currently obtained in public schools. Toyosi observed that, Nigeria cannot claim to be the giant of Africa, with the current poor state of its education.
In her opinion, Toyosi is of the view that, technology be a very potent tool in the transformation of the educational sector in Nigeria. The first thing she wants Nigeria to look at, is the democratization of access to quality education content for children, especially, children from low income earning parents and rural communities. She noted that the schools that we currently have, are inadequate to cater for the needs of Nigerian children.
“We should also be thinking of how technology will enable children to have personalized learning, so that, children are able to learn at their own pace, read ahead and prepare ahead of classes”, Toyosi opined. She stated that we should also be thinking of the concept of disruptive innovation, to note how technology has impacted on various sectors, like Finance, Payments, Ecommerce, etc.
Toyosi is also of the view that, contrary to the popular thinking that, utilizing technology in education is expensive, it is, in fact, not expensive. She stated that, it is cheaper to build a huge technological framework that provides an open source, where children can learn basic technology, basic science, social science and English, as well as all the subjects provided in the Nigerian educational curriculum, from Primary school to the University level. “You cannot use yesterday’s knowledge to face today’s challenges and the kind of education that Nigerian children are getting does not prepare them for the future at al”, she observed.
According to Toyosi, teachers and students have to be carried along by State governments, in a bid to making the children embrace technology. This is because, most States focus only on the children and at the end of the day, they fail, just because they did not carry the teachers, who were going to teach the children along.”The teachers who are going to teach these children have to be tech-savvy”, she opined.
Toyosi does not believe that, technology will, forever, support and complement the efforts of teachers, in response to the notion that technology might, one day replace the teachers in schools. “I think that, in Nigeria, the government and the parents need to prioritize teachers as much as possible”, she concluded.
Canal+ is to cut jobs at MultiChoice as part of a sweeping restructuring plan aimed at stabilising the African pay-TV operator, following years of operational and financial pressure.
The move comes alongside a planned $115 million capital injection, underscoring the urgency of efforts to revive the business after the French media group took control.
The planned layoffs are expected to form a core element of a broader cost-cutting and efficiency drive, as Canal+ seeks to streamline MultiChoice’s operations and improve profitability.
The restructuring signals a shift toward leaner operations, with a focus on eliminating redundancies and optimising the company’s cost base.
MultiChoice has struggled in recent years with declining subscriber numbers across key African markets, weighed down by macroeconomic pressures, currency volatility, and changing consumer behaviour.
The rise of global streaming platforms has intensified competition, chipping away at the company’s traditional pay-TV dominance.
Canal+’s intervention marks a pivotal moment for MultiChoice, reflecting a more aggressive approach to repositioning the business.
By combining fresh capital with structural reforms, the new owners are aiming to both stabilise short-term performance and lay the groundwork for longer-term growth.
The $115 million injection is expected to provide immediate financial relief, supporting operations and potential strategic initiatives.
However, the accompanying job cuts highlight the depth of the challenges facing the company and the scale of transformation required to restore competitiveness.
Nigeria has ranked first globally in the ownership of the two largest stablecoins, Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC), reflecting the country’s growing reliance on dollar-linked digital assets.
USDT, USDC
Stablecoins such as USDT and USDC are designed to maintain a fixed value against the U.S. dollar, allowing users to store money digitally while avoiding the price volatility associated with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
According to the 2026 Stablecoin Utility Report released by BVNK, about 59 percent of Nigerian crypto users hold USDT, while 48 percent own USDC, giving the country the highest combined ownership rate among all nations surveyed.
The report placed Nigeria ahead of several major economies, including Australia and India, highlighting the country’s strong adoption of dollar-denominated digital assets. Australia ranked second with 34 percent USDT ownership and 29 percent USDC, while India placed third with 30 percent USDT and 27 percent USDC holdings.
The study also examined adoption levels across other regions. Countries such as Colombia and Singapore showed strong usage of both stablecoins, while adoption levels were also notable in South Africa and the United States.
Other markets included in the analysis were Philippines, Thailand and Argentina, where stablecoin ownership has also increased significantly. Among European economies, the report said France and Germany showed moderate levels of adoption, while Latin American markets such as Mexico and Brazil recorded smaller but growing usage rates.
The United Kingdom also appeared in the ranking with modest levels of stablecoin ownership. The report noted that USDT ownership exceeds USDC in many countries, including Nigeria, Australia, India, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Argentina and France.
However, USDC is often viewed as a more compliance-focused stablecoin because of its stronger transparency and regulatory alignment. In some markets, including South Africa, Colombia, Germany and Brazil, the report found that USDC adoption slightly exceeds USDT.
More broadly, the data suggests that stablecoin adoption is being driven largely by emerging economies rather than advanced financial markets. According to the report, countries such as Nigeria, Argentina and the Philippines are among the biggest users of stablecoins, where people increasingly rely on dollar-pegged digital assets to protect savings from currency volatility and facilitate cross-border payments.
Spotify has unveiled Nigeria-specific data from its annual Loud & Clear report, highlighting how Nigerian artists generated more than ₦60 billion in revenue from the platform alone last year, amid explosive growth in streams, local consumption, and global discovery.
The report, which analyzes millions of data points to illuminate music streaming economics, shows Nigerian artists’ revenue surged over 140% in the past two years.
This boom stems from rising global appeal and stronger domestic engagement, with 30.3 billion streams and 1.6 billion listening hours on Spotify in 2025. First-time discoveries of Nigerian music hit 1.3 billion, up 26% from 2024.
Locally, Nigerian tracks dominated Spotify Nigeria’s Daily Top 50, accounting for over 80% of features, while consumption of homegrown artists jumped 170% year-on-year.
“Nigeria’s music scene thrives on creativity, innovation, and global influence,” said Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, Spotify’s Managing Director for Africa. “Loud & Clear spotlights how artists are forging sustainable careers and deepening local ties.”
Key highlights include:
55% year-on-year growth in local streams for Nigerian female artists.
75% surge in streams for independent Nigerian artists.
Independents and indie labels earning 58% of all royalties from Nigerian artists on Spotify.
Spotify’s editorial playlists featured nearly 2,000 Nigerian artists in 2025, boosting visibility. Nigerian music appeared in 320 million global user playlists and over 12 million in Nigeria, totaling more than 60 million playlists worldwide.
The report also notes evolving tastes, with top-growing genres in Nigeria over five years including pop urbaine, alternative pop, anime, emo, and drill.
For full details, visit spotify.com/loudandclear.
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