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admin Stakeholders in the education sector have advised the Federal Government to see gaming as a gateway to education and intellectual stimulation. They urged the government to include gaming in the school curriculum to enable students compete favourably with their global counterparts.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Game Evolution Technologies, Solakunmi Adenipebi, made the call during The Omniverse Africa Gaming Tournament Prize Giving ceremony in Lagos. Thirty-two gamers were rewarded with N5 million.
According to Adenipebi, gaming, if balanced, can be incredibly valuable. He affirmed that gaming does not distract students from their studies. He said: “In fact, 90 per cent of professional gamers excel academically, proving that gaming doesn’t hinder academic success. The word distraction means that gaming is not allowing them to read, which I beg to differ because for the professional gamers or the gamers that we’ve seen in the past couple of years, 90 per cent of them are actually doing very well in schools.
“Gaming is for smart people. What we’ve done, and most especially for the younger ones, (primary and secondary school), is ensure you’re doing well in school before becoming part of our industry.
“We can’t really control how they play or when they play, but the most important thing is letting them know that education comes first. And they must be doing well to be part of us because gaming is for smart people. So we make sure we drive the importance of education to the kids while they are playing games.
“We introduced what we call gamification in education, which is adding new games to allow them study with their games. We have gamification in different subjects like Mathematics, English, Geography, and others.
“We also introduced those games to help them pick interest in education. So all these are measures to ensure there’s a balance between gaming and education.
“The N5 million prize pool also solidifies Omniverse Africa’s commitment to empowering and recognising talented sports athletes.”
Co-convener of The Omniverse Africa, Charles Emembolu, said: “Gaming is no longer just a hobby; it’s a profession, a sport, and a gateway to honing valuable skills that are handsomely rewarded.
“Beyond the tournament prize money, gamers have the potential to earn through in-game tokens and coins. But, more importantly, the industry is a significant job creator, with annual revenue exceeding $400 million.”
