Stakeholders from four states in the North-West region gathered in Katsina to discuss how to tackle the problem of children not attending school on Thursday.
The two-day meeting, organized by UNICEF and the state governments of Katsina, Kaduna, Jigawa, and Kano, aimed to find ways to reduce the number of out-of-school children and improve school enrollment and completion rates.
Mrs. Azuka Minkiti, an Education Specialist with UNICEF Nigeria, explained that the meeting was about identifying where more help was needed in addressing the issue of out-of-school children.
They aimed to create a collective plan to reduce the number of children out of school and ensure more kids start and finish their schooling.
“Now we are looking into this framework, and getting states to develop models to address the high number of out-of-school children in their states.”
“That’s what we are doing today, and tomorrow, we are going to focus on school enrollment, retention, transition and completion of both primary and secondary education.”
Hajiya Mairo Othman, the Permanent Secretary of Katsina State Ministry for Basic and Secondary Education, mentioned that the state had recently hired 7,300 teachers and was building new schools to accommodate more students.
Additionally, they were establishing special schools with modern facilities to support underprivileged children.
The Kano State Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Umar Haruna-Doguwa, stated that the state government would soon declare an education emergency.
They planned to integrate Tsangaya schools (traditional Islamic schools) into the formal education system.
Prof. Haruna Musa, the Chairman of the Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) in Jigawa, expressed the state government’s commitment to establishing integrated Tsangaya centers to address the out-of-school children issue.
They also aimed to involve the School-Based Management Committees in overseeing these schools.
“We also want the School-Based Management Committee (SBMC) to own those schools, so that they would be able to ensure that the children are going to school,” he said.
Malam Salisu Lawal, the Director of Planning in the Kaduna State Ministry for Education, mentioned that the state government had secured funds to build more schools, ensuring better access to quality education for children.
All participants, including lawmakers and other stakeholders, acknowledged the seriousness of the out-of-school children problem in the region. They agreed on the need for everyone to work together to support government efforts in addressing this issue.
