Let’s revolutionalise education with AI – Galaxy Backbone boss

By: Michael Mike

A professor of Cybersecurity and Managing Director of Galaxy Backbone Limited, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, has called on African leaders to modernise and revolutionalise education with Artificial Intelligence.
Prof. Adeyanju made this call in Abuja while delivering the maiden Public Lecture of the African School of Economics (The Pan-African University of Excellence) on “Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Higher Education in Africa” on Thursday, January 30, 2025.

He emphasised the importance of education in advancing sustainable development and achieving socio-economic growth. He regretted that despite the progress that Africa has made in recent years, it is still constrained by backwardness in education which has limited its capacity to compete with some other regions of the world.

The AI expert identified low teacher effectiveness and high out-of-school are some of the problems thwarting the educational development of Africans. He then advocated for the integration of AI to address the challenges facing education in Africa.

According to him, “AI can revolutionalise African education through language learning, chatbots and virtual classrooms. It can also provide tailored learning experiences and improve access to quality education in remote areas.”

Prof. Adeyanju recommended forging culturally grounded and ethical frameworks, empowering educators through comprehensive training, bridging digital divides with strategic initiatives, fostering indigenous AI solutions and addressing infrastructural deficits among others as part of the way forward for Africans to cope with the challenges of the future.

Earlier in his address, which he tagged “The Past is Present, The Future is Now”, the Vice Chancellor of African School of Economics (The Pan-African University of Excellence), who was also the Chief Host at the event, Prof. Mahfouz Adedimeji, decried the tendency of many people these days to outsource their natural intelligence to Artificial Intelligence.

He suggested the need for ethical frameworks in AI utilisation and sounded a note caution while likening AI to water and fire that are indispensable and useful as long as we are in control of them, but dangerous when out of control of human beings that they serve.

The Vice-Chancellor also used the medium to describe African School of Economics as a conventional university offering a wide variety of academic programmes including Cybersecurity, Software Engineering, International Relations, Microbiology, Medical Laboratory Science, Public Health among others into which admissions are still open this year.

Let’s revolutionalise education with AI – Galaxy Backbone boss

Embrace Artificial Intelligence with ethics, VC urges Nigerians

By:Michael Mike

The Vice-Chancellor of African School of Economics (The Pan African University of Excellence), Prof. Mahfouz Adedimeji, has urged Africans in general and Nigerians in particular to embrace Artificial Intelligence while cautioning that it is must be used ethically.

Prof. Adedimeji made this submission in his address, “The Past is Present, The Present is Now”, delivered at the maiden Public Lecture of the university held on Thursday, January 30, 2024. The theme of the lecture, delivered by the Managing Director and CEO of Galaxy Backbone Limited, an agency of the Federal Government, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, was “Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Higher Education in Africa”.

According to the two-time Vice-Chancellor, humanity today stands precariously at the brink of a precipice with fascinating and disruptive technologies that can be used to make life easy and abused to commit atrocities. He described Artificial Intelligence, once a subject of science fiction, as a current reality that permeates various facets of our lives, with its potential in education being amazing, adding that it is part of the past that is still present and it is an innovation that will still shape the future and the future is here already.

“With AI, it is possible for each student to receive personalised instruction. We can also analyse vast amounts of data and gain insights into how each student learns best, meaning that a one-size-fits-all model of education may no longer be applicable or sustainable. AI opens new doors to customised learning experience that nurtures each student’s potential. With instructional tools, education can be more dynamic, engaging and interactive, sparking curiosity, igniting creative thinking and fostering a love for lifelong learning,” he said.

He also noted the indispensable roles of AI in facilitating access to education. “We know that AI can facilitate global access to quality education, the fourth Sustainable Development Goal, and bring world-class resources to remote and underserved areas, thereby breaking down geographical barriers and democratising access to knowledge. Students anywhere can also have access to the same cutting-edge materials and expert instruction available somewhere, leveling the playing field like never before. The opportunities are limitless,” he stressed.

Nevertheless, he warned against its abuse, arguing that while Africans embark on the exciting journey that AI offers, there is a need for protocol, policies and frameworks the safeguard those values that are dear to us from being eroded, so that technology one day does not become our master, controlling and misleading us. He added that the tail should not wag the dog and humans should always be in charge, not that we should allow technology to control us.

He illustrated the need for ethical use of AI with the situation encountered in the 2004 American film, “I, Robot”, which stars Will Smith. He said the film futuristically portrays intelligent robots filling up public service positions with a smart but technophobic cop investigating a crime that might have been perpetrated by a robot, which eventually constitutes a threat to humanity. He noted that there is ultimately a deadly class between smart robots and humans in the film portraying the threat to humans that created them.

Prof. Adedimeji further used the occasion to invite applicants to the University, which he described as a convention university that offers twenty academic programmes in Arts, Social Sciences, Science and Computing as well as Allied Health Sciences at the undergraduate level. He added that his university also runs approved postgraduate programmes in Economics, Public Administration, Business Administration as well as Finance and Management.

Embrace Artificial Intelligence with ethics, VC urges Nigerians

UNAIDS Calls for Continuation of Essential HIV Services While US Global Funding is Paused

By: Michael Mike

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has called for a continuation of all essential HIV services while the United States pauses its funding for foreign aid.

The UNAIDS had on 29 January welcome the news that United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, had approved an “Emergency Humanitarian Waiver,” allowing people to continue accessing lifesaving HIV treatment funded by the U.S. in 55 countries worldwide.

More than 20 million people – two-thirds of all people living with HIV accessing HIV treatment globally – are directly supported by the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

The statement at the weekend by UNAIDS, said: “While continuity of HIV treatment is essential, services must continue to be monitored, and oversight provided for quality. Other critical HIV services for people, especially marginalized people including children, women, and key populations, must continue. Last year, PEPFAR provided over 83.8 million people with critical HIV testing services; reached 2.3 million adolescent girls and young women with HIV prevention services; 6.6 million orphans, vulnerable children, and their caregivers received HIV care and support; and 2.5 million people were newly enrolled on pre-exposure prophylaxis to prevent HIV infection.

“Since PEPFAR was created, the United States has been steadfast in its leadership in the fight against HIV. The U.S. has saved millions of lives through its programmes, particularly in the countries most affected by HIV. PEPFAR has had remarkable results in stopping new infections and expanding access to HIV treatment – and this must continue.

“Globally, there are 1.3 million people that are newly infected with HIV every year, 3,500 every day. Young women and girls in Africa are at alarming high risk of HIV, where 3,100 young women and girls aged 15 to 24 years become infected with HIV every week and at least half of all people from key populations are not being reached with prevention services.

“Pregnant women in high HIV prevalent areas must be tested for HIV to determine whether they are living with HIV so they can protect their baby by taking antiretroviral therapy prior to birth. As a result, babies will be born HIV-free.

The statement lamented that many organisations providing services for people living with HIV that are funded, or partly funded, by PEPFAR have reported they will shut their doors due to the funding pause with lack of clarity and great uncertainty about the future, stating that UNAIDS is evaluating the impact and will provide routine and real-time updates to share the latest global and country information, data, guidance, and references.

Executive Director at National Forum of People Living with HIV Network Uganda (NAFOPHANU), Flavia Kyomukama, said: “PEPFAR gave us hope and now the executive order is shattering the very hope it offered for all people living with HIV and our families. As communities we are in shock with the continued closure of clinics. We resolutely demand that all our governments come in haste to fill the gap in human resources needed at the moment to ensure sustainability of HIV service delivery.”

Zimbabwe`s umbrella network of people living with HIV (ZNNP+) stated that the implementation of stop work orders has led to significant fears, including reduced access to essential services, loss of community trust and long-term health outcomes.

The statement said as the waiver is effective for a review period of all U.S. foreign development assistance, future coverage of HIV services – including for treatment – remains unclear and the lives of the millions of people supported by PEPFAR are in jeopardy and could be at stake.

Anele Yawa, General Secretary for the Treatment Action Campaign is worried, noting that: “The PEPFAR-fund freeze will take South Africa and the world back in terms of the gains we have made in our response to HIV,” he said. “We are asking ourselves how are we going to cope in the next three months as people are going to be left behind in terms of prevention, treatment and care.”

The statement added that at a moment when the world can finally get the upper hand on one of the world’s deadliest pandemics, aided by new long-acting HIV prevention and treatment medicines coming to market this year, UNAIDS urges the U.S. to continue its unparalleled leadership and accelerate, not diminish, efforts to end AIDS.

Ut further said UNAIDS looks forward to partnering with the United States, other donors and countries most affected by HIV to ensure a robust and sustainable response to HIV and to achieve our collective goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

UNAIDS Calls for Continuation of Essential HIV Services While US Global Funding is Paused