African Education magazine debuts Jan. 23

The Chief Executive Officer/ Editor-in-Chief, EduTimes Africa Magazine, Mr Oladapo Akande, says there is a need to connect education to people in a way that is practical and useful, to endear more African youth to it and change their negative narratives.

Akande said on Thursday that this was one of the driving forces behind EduTimes Africa, a monthly magazine, which would hit the stands on Jan. 23, and also be online.

The magazine, according to a statement in Lagos, is a founded by Akande, alongside two others, Adebiyi Oke and Kammonke Abam.

Akande said that education was one sector in which many countries on the African continent were crawling in terms of development instead of soaring, despite the quantum of natural resources many of them possess.

The Chief Executive regretted that many Nigerian youth had been repeating a mantra, “Education is a scam” for some time now.

Akande said it was difficult to argue with such youths if one considered the general neglect of the public education sector, “the 33.3 per cent unemployment and similar underemployment rate, and a staggering 42% unemployment rate for the youth demographic”.

He said students in public institutions also faced incessant strikes by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) protesting poor welfare and renumeration, which elongated their stay in school.

The Editor-in-Chief, however, said there was the need to enlighten and guide them and the African youth generally, highlight innovations in the educational sector across the continent, and provide reasons for them to see the importance of good education.

Akande said that the magazine was poised to provide this through revealing guest written articles by those seasoned in the industry and inspiring interviews of those who point to a good education as the reason for their success story.

On his part, Adebiyi Oke, initiator of the project, said that the economic development of the African continent was only as good as its educational development.

Edutimes Africa, according to the founders, will benefit students, parents, policy makers and all those who desire an educational sector that will catalyze socioeconomic development in the African society.