Safaricom eyes more revenues in Longhorn-backed school tablets deal

Centum CEO James Mworia was taken through the digital learning platform by a student of Blooming Flowers Academy during the launch of the platform. [Courtesy]

Longhorn Publishers Plc through LoHo Learning has partnered with Safaricom to launch a new digital learning platform designed to offer learning materials through mini computers.

The firms said yesterday the new digital learning platform has Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) aligned content.

They noted it covers pre-school to Form 4 learners, core textbooks, reference material and readers that are interactive, and engaging with auto-marked assessments.

It is accessible both on ordinary web browsers as well as on tablets assembled by Safaricom.

"This platform offers a comprehensive suite of features tailored for learners, teachers, and partners, providing access to diverse educational content from multiple publishers and content developers," said James Ong'ang'a, the CEO of LoHo Learning, a subsidiary of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) listed Longhorn.

The LoHo Learning tablets will have internet connectivity that is blocked to educational content ensuring child protection and safeguarding are enforced, the firms said.

LoHo Learning and Safaricom have set a target to reach 1.5 million learners this year.

The platform was officially launched at Blooming Flowers Academy in Syokimau, a school that is already using it for its students, said the firms in a statement.

As part of the partnership, Safaricom which has been looking to diversify its revenue streams will assemble the tablets, and provide data connectivity and insurance cover in case of loss.

"This (the insurance cover) is very important for schools that invest in buying many tablets," said the Safaricom Director for Public Sector Digital Transformation, Boniface Mungania.

The LoHo Learning content is derived from KICD-approved books.

It also includes extra material like videos, audio, educational games, quizzes, and assignments which help to enrich the content.

The teacher's dashboard features a centralized platform for lesson planning, content curation, and assessment management, streamlining teaching workflows.

Teachers will also have access to a rich repository of educational resources from multiple publishers, enabling diverse and engaging teaching experiences.

The Digital Learning Platform is priced at Sh13,000, which can be paid through monthly installments to make them easier to acquire, said the firms.

"If you use the Safaricom-provided data it is locked to digital learning which is useful to parents who want to control the content their children use. However, on Wi-Fi someone can use it as a normal tablet," said Mr Ong'ang'a.

Content creators who develop educational content will sign revenue-sharing to monetize their content, ensuring a sustainable ecosystem for educational content development and distribution, added the firms.