Critical Stakeholders Set Education Agenda For Tinubu

Critical stakeholders have tasked the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on the need to reimage, ensure adequate school security, and provide quality basic and secondary school education in Nigeria.

They said Nigeria, despite having the largest economy in Africa, continues to grapple with various challenges that have hampered the country’s educational, economic growth and development.

Specifically the founder, Wellbeing Foundation Africa, and wife of former Senate president, Mrs. Toyin Saraki, while stressing the importance of education in shaping the abilities, attitudes, and behaviors of a child, she averred that the Nigerian education system has been hindered by various upheavals.

Saraki spoke at the 2023 National Moment on Basic & Secondary Education, organized by Malala Fund, in partnership with the Education Development Partners’ Group, on Thursday, in Abuja.

She urged the incoming administration to be intentional about providing basic amenities for the girl-child, adding that legislations must be amended to make education free, compulsory for the girl-child.

She said: “Despite having the largest economy in Africa, Nigeria has one of the highest number of out of school children with anywhere from 10.5-15 million between the ages of 5-14 are currently not in attendance. Sixty percent of out of school children are located in northern Nigeria, where over 50% of eligible children are out of school.

“Poverty is a major barrier, as well as a mistrust of “western” education and the poor quality of education currently provided in schools. For girls, social and cultural practices such as child marriage pose additional challenges.

“Education is the most powerful investment in our future, and this moment is an opportunity for us to encourage our new government to reimagine education for the country and find better ways to provide 12 years of safe, free, quality education for all. Through amending legislation to make education free and compulsory up to senior secondary level, thus guaranteeing 12 years of uninterrupted education for Nigerian children, and by adopting a progressive universalisation approach to the implementation of 12 years of education, which priorities support those at greatest risk of not learning;

“The poor, the discriminated against, girls, children with disabilities and those facing multiple disadvantages, Nigeria will be on track to achieving SDG 4. This requires financial planning which is gender-responsive and allocates nearly 4% of the GDP and 22.5% of the national budget for education by 2025.

“We must also commit to make schools a safe space, ensuring that the students deprived of access to quality education as a result of conflict, violence or crises are promptly given access to quality alternative education in a safe environment, in line with the National Guidelines for Accelerated Basic Education while enhancing teacher training on school related gender-based violence, inclusion, safeguarding and creating standard operating procedures for responding to rights violations and clear referral pathways for health and wellbeing services.

“Together, we can unlock the power of education. If every girl completed a full 12 year cycle of education in the world, the global economy would benefit from between $15-$30 trillion dollars in lifetime productivity and earnings, peace and security would improve as achieving gender equality in education can decrease the likelihood of conflict by as much as 37%, learning also reduces early marriages, with a 64% reduction occurring if girls are provided secondary education, and if all women in Nigeria completed their secondary education, the country would lower the mortality rate for children under five years old by 43%.”

On her part, the Programme Director — Nigeria, Malala Fund, Fatima Yerima Askira, said there is a need to declare a state of emergency in the country’s educational sector, seeing the statistics of out-of-school children, numbering about 200 million.

Recalling a 2021 situation analysis and review of girls’ education in Nigeria, conducted by Malala Fund, Askira, stressed that out-of-school children are predominant in the Northern part of the country, urging the incoming administration to ensure policy that would ensure all girls complete 12 years of education.

Meanwhile, a senior advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Prof. Joy Ezeilo, advocated for more legal frameworks to protect the girl-child from sexual harassment.