The Federal Government will officially launch the Digital National Education Information Management System (DNEMIS) on July 1, marking a major step in its drive to modernise education administration, with more than 32 million Nigerian students already enrolled on the platform.
The announcement was made on Monday in Abuja by the National Project Coordinator of the Special Programmes Operations and Implementation Unit in the Office of the Minister of Education, Adebayo Onigbanjo, ahead of the platform’s unveiling.
According to Onigbanjo, DNEMIS is the core component of the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure (NEDI), an initiative under the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI) designed to provide accurate, integrated and real-time data for education planning, budgeting, policy formulation and service delivery.
He said the digital platform addresses long-standing challenges caused by fragmented data systems by creating a unified database that captures every learner, school, teacher and government investment in the education sector.
Onigbanjo noted that having over 32 million students on the platform already provides government with valuable information to monitor enrolment, track students’ academic progress and identify where interventions are needed to reduce the number of out-of-school children.
“If you don’t measure, you can’t truly understand the challenge. Today, we already have 32 million students on the platform, giving us valuable insight into where learners are and how they progress through the education system,” he said.
He added that the platform would improve accountability by making schools, teachers and government investments more visible while reducing waste and enhancing efficiency across the sector.
The project coordinator explained that the long-term goal is to create a comprehensive digital record of every learner from enrolment through graduation, enabling better planning and improved learning outcomes nationwide.
Addressing concerns about data security, Onigbanjo assured stakeholders that DNEMIS was built on globally recognised digital architecture with strong safeguards, including data masking and secure identity management systems, to protect personal information.
Also speaking, National Coordinator of the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure, Abubakar Isah, said the platform complies with Nigeria’s data protection regulations and international security standards.
He noted that while schools and state governments would have access to their respective data, non-sensitive information would also be available to researchers, development partners, alumni associations and communities to support educational development and promote transparency.
Special Adviser to the Minister of Education on Digital Communications and E-Learning, Mojoyin Adebajo, described DNEMIS as a major milestone in Nigeria’s digital education transformation.
She said the platform, developed on the globally recognised DHIS2 infrastructure, would digitise the Annual School Census and provide reliable nationwide data on schools, teachers, learners and educational infrastructure.
Adebajo added that the July 1 launch would also feature the unveiling of the Public DNEMIS Portal, which will provide researchers, journalists, civil society organisations and members of the public with access to selected official education data.
The Federal Ministry of Education said the initiative, developed with technical support from UNICEF and the University of Oslo, reflects the government’s commitment to strengthening evidence-based planning, transparency and improved educational outcomes across Nigeria.
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