By Sunday Adah, Abuja
Experts have urged government at all levels, private sector actors, educational institutions, technology providers among other stakeholders to leverage the opportunities that come with artificial intelligence (AI) through training to address the challenges posed by insecurity and expand access to quality education across Nigeria.
The advice was contained in communique Issued at the end of the 3rd Annual International Conference of the Faculty of Education (FED), Modibbo Adama Uniiversiity, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria on “Quality Education in the Face of Challenges Posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Insecurity in Nigeria”, signed by Prof Joseph Zambwa and Dr A. E. Asuquo as
conference chairman and Secretary, respectively.
Held at the Lecture Theatre 1, College of Medical Sciences of the university from 12th – 17th April, 2026, the FED international conference brought together stakeholders from across the education sector, including government representatives, academics, researchers, policy makers, development partners, students, and private sector actors to brainstorm on the subject matter.
The conference was convened in response to growing concerns over rising global AI opportunities and insecurity disruptions, worsening economic hardship and pressing need for strategic investment in transformative education quality and human capital development as a pathway to national and global resilience.
After intensive deliberations in plenary sessions, technical panels and breakout groups, participants at the conference realised the urgent need to address the intertwined challenges of AI and insecurity on education quality and resolved to address it.
Key Observations at the Conference
Nigeria still grapples with the challenge of equipping its pupils with basic numeracy and literacy skills amid national insecurity; exacerbated by AI and digital literacy gaps in curriculum of education in Nigeria (SDG no. 4). Quality education is a fundamental right and a prerequisite for sustainable national development; it must be safeguarded even in challenging contexts.
AI is no longer in the future. It is already a reality and rapidly transforming teaching, learning and assessment across all levels of education from basic to tertiary institutions.
AI have positive and negative sides, it is the duty of individual user to decide which side is most beneficial for the aim in view.
The fate of education quality in Nigeria hangs on harnessing AI potentials and addressing complex root causes of insecurity in the country.
Insecurity is common experience all over Nigeria, it disrupts education in all ramifications, destroying valuable education infrastructure and wasting instructional time.
Nigeria’s education future can be better guaranteed by leveraging on AI potentials as it can safeguard the education system from insecurity (safe teaching/learning environments).
AI may be a panacea for instructional delivery in unsafe and insecure areas (e-learning, virtual laboratories, mobile based education etc).
There is a critical shortage of skilled professionals in terms of teachers’ readiness to deploy the use of AI to teach their students.
There is the absence of national acts and laws directly guiding the ethical use of AI to avoid infringing on rights of users.
AI content currently streaming online lack local cultural relevance and contexts.
There is wide AI access divide among Nigerians in terms of streaming, affordability, data network availability etc.
Access to AI tools, its adoption and usage are uneven and under leveraged, the digital divide exacerbates education inequality.
Despite all these observations, AI has come to stay; hence, to progress, Nigeria must key into it and people must learn to use it positively to enhance the quality of education offered to all citizens at all levels, as quality education that is standard, functional, inclusive, progressive, accessible, affordable and sustainable is the right of each student (learner) in Nigeria at all levels of education.
Resolutions
Need for Curriculum Review: It was resolved that there is the need to integrate AI and digital literacy content in school curriculum at all levels of education; and it should be compulsory but it should have local context and relevance.
There is need for direct legislation by the National Assemblies to enact acts /law targeted at AI Education, Training and usage to ensure ethical and positive deployment of AI tools.
Government should be intentional about financing, supporting and providing quality education to all citizens at all levels of education in Nigeria.
The remote causes of insecurity should be sincerely addressed; all grievances should be seen to pacified and resolved amicably.
Schools administrative security protocols should be automated to proactively safeguard all learning centers/schools/campuses in Nigeria
AI divides, inequality in access, leverage and affordability should be bridged between the different users of this technology.
There should be coordinated actions among government agencies, educational institutions, technology providers and all stakeholders to ensure AI improves education quality without replacing teachers’ or students’ cognitive powers; via integrated technology-security aware innovations.
The conference also saw that there is a need for training more teacher and technologists on AI tools and digital literacy to support teaching other learners about same.
Call for Action:
The assembly of experts therefore called on government at all levels, educational institutions, development agencies, the private sector, and civil society to prioritise quality education and training as a corner stone of global knowledge and skills acquisition for security and economic resilience.
“By investing in human capital and innovation, we can cultivate a future where no community is left behind,” they said.