This paper is commissioned by UNESCO for the International Mother Language Day 2022 (IMLD 2022) which falls on 21 February, 2022. It focuses on technology-enabled multilingual education – the potential role of technology for multilingual teaching and learning – especially in an era which has witnessed the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic with its disruption of the educational calendar for a protracted period of two years. It also looks at what opportunities exist for technology in multilingual teaching and learning and the challenges that could be encountered in the process. A large number of low-income and high-income countries were forced to lockdown their citizenry, including schools during this period. The logical solution the world could resort to therefore was the use of various forms of distance learning methodologies and the application of technological tools. This situation brought to light the needs associated with the different levels of learners, that is, children, youth and adults. How about the teachers, school managers and administrators? According to the Incheon Declaration, ‘Information and communication technologies (ICTs) must be harnessed to strengthen education systems, knowledge dissemination, information access, quality and effective learning, and more effective service provision’. What are the opportunities that exist for the schools and the individuals to adopt along with ICTs for teaching and learning? What are the challenges posed by these tools and the methods of deployment for those involved in Mother Language teaching and learning?
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