The Minister of State for Education, Dr Yusuf Sununu, has expressed deep concern over the escalating number of out-of-school children, particularly in Northern Nigeria.
He described the situation as disheartening and unacceptable, stressing the need for the collective efforts of all stakeholders in tackling the challenges facing Nigeria’s education sector.
The minister emphasised that failure in education equates to the failure of the entire nation.
He made the remarks while speaking at the 2023 Bauchi Education Summit held in Bauchi on Monday, with the theme: “Improving Access and Quality of Education in Bauchi State.”
According to him, there is an urgent need for concerted efforts to reverse the alarming trend.
“The rising figure of Out-of-School Children in Nigeria, particularly in the Northern part is not only unacceptable but disheartening, there must be concerted efforts to address and reverse the trend of this time-bomb phenomenon”
This is as he expressed optimism that the newly established National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children will facilitate better collaborations and synergy in addressing issues of Out-of-School Children and grant the Tsangaya schools the necessary recognition and status they deserve.
Dr Sununu revealed that the Commission aims to address and integrate Tsangaya/Madarasa schools into basic education, urging collaboration from Ulamas and school proprietors.
The minister commended the State Governor, Bala Mohammed’s pro-activeness in bridging the gaps in the education sector in the state, citing initiatives such as teacher capacity building, recruitment of additional teachers, and infrastructure development.
He encouraged the summit participants to leverage the opportunities provided by the state governor, urging them to devise practical, implementable, locally accepted, and cost-effective solutions to address the prevailing educational challenges in the state.
Earlier in his address, Governor Bala Mohammed said part of his administration’s commitment to ensuring quality education in the state is the increase in the state budgetary allocation to education.
“I am proud to announce a progressive increase in budgetary allocation to education since the beginning of my first administration. In the fiscal year 2023, we have allocated approximately 16% of the total budget to education, a record high in recent years.
”This significant investment underscores our firm belief that a well-funded education sector is crucial for the overall development of our state”.
Rising figure of out-of-school cildren in Nigeria unacceptable – Education minister
