The Senate has decided to organise a national summit to tackle the escalating issue of out-of-school children in Nigeria. This decision was made on Tuesday after Lawal Usman, chair of the committee on education (basic and secondary), presented a report.
According to a 2022 report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Nigeria has the highest number of out-of-school children globally, with 20 million children affected.
While presenting his report, Usman emphasised the need for a collaborative effort between the federal and state governments to address this growing problem.
During the debate, Solomon Olamilekan, senator representing Ogun West, criticised state governments for not doing enough to address the issue.
“The federal government is doing a lot on universal basic education, but the sub-nationals are not providing their counterpart funds,” he said. “It is a menace we need to tackle but we need to do more at the sub-national level. We should not put all the problems on the doorstep of the federal government.”
Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin highlighted the urgency of the situation, calling for immediate action from all stakeholders.
“This is a ticking time bomb and when it explodes it will consume us, especially the northern part of this country,” he said. “Islam does not allow the roaming of children on the streets. Reorientation needs to commence immediately. Stakeholders should sit down and find solutions.”
Adamu Aliero, senator representing Kebbi North, supported the call for a national conference where the federal government and sub-nationals could collaborate to find lasting solutions.
“Nigeria is the only country in the world where we have over 20 million out-of-school children. I agree there should be a national conference on it,” Aliero said.
The report was adopted after being put to a vote by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, though a date for the summit has yet to be set.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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