By Azeezat Adedigba

The Nigerian government says it has committed N10 billion to remove 10.2 million out-of-school children from streets in the next five years.

The governments said it hopes to achieve the target by enrolling two million children yearly in the next five years.

The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, said this during the unveiling of "Education Sector Short and Medium Term Blueprint/Work Plan on the implementation of Education for Change: A Ministerial Strategic Plan (MSP)" document presented on Thursday in Abuja.

The two-day retreat was attended by states' commissioners of education, permanent secretaries, chairpersons of State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs), directors and heads of parastatals and agencies in the education sector.

According to the document, by the end of 2020, about N3 billion would have been committed by 19 states, "outside the intervention of the federal government to ensure the enrollment of over two million school-age children who are not in school."

The document also shows that states are expected to commit another N2.4 billion in 2021, N2 billion in 2022, N1.5 billion in 2023 and N1.1 billion in 2024 respectively towards addressing the problem.

Mr Adamu said the government would embark on sensitisation of traditional rulers and religious leaders on the need to inform their communities of the benefits of formal education.

The minister also said there will be 'crackdown' on substandard primary and secondary schools across the country.

Challenge

Currently, Nigeria has over 10 million out-of-school children and 60 per cent of that number are girls, many of whom enrol in school but drop out along the line.

The budgetary allocation to the education sector in Nigeria is lower than the 15 to 20 per cent recommended by the United Nations.

The global organisation recommended the budgetary benchmark to enable nations adequately cater to rising education demands.

However, Mr Adamu, in his last administration apologised for his inability to reduce the number of out-of-school children during his tenure.

Increased Funding

Mr Adamu appealed to lawmakers to increase allocation to the education sector. He asked state governors to invest more in basic education.

The minister also advised state governors to be prompt in providing matching grants to access the federal government's interventions through the Universal Basic Education Commission.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how President Muhammadu Buhari proposed a capital expenditure of N48 billion for the Ministry of Education in the 2020 appropriation bill he submitted to the National Assembly.

Mr Buhari also proposed N112 billion for the Universal Basic Education (UBEC).

However, the president did not mention the recurrent expenditure for the education sector in his budget speech.

The N48 billion proposed for capital expenditure for the education ministry for 2020 is lower than the N61.7 billion in 2018 and N56 billion for the sector in 2017.

However, it is slightly higher than the capital expenditure of N47.2 billion in 2019.

There is also an increase in UBEC allocation for 2020, compared to 2017 and 2018. N112 billion was budgeted in 2020. In 2018, the budget was N109.06 billion and N95 billion in 2017.

Messrs Buhari and Adamu had assured that the education sector would witness remarkable improvement in funding in 2019.

'States must be committed to the plan'

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Sonny Echono, urged all the state commissioners at the meeting to take the action plan contained in the document seriously.

He said the 2018 National Personnel Audit of Primary schools in Nigeria showed that 10.2 million children were out of school.

"Following the various federal government intervention programmes aimed at reducing the rate of out-of-school children in Nigeria by 2 million every year for the next five years, the estimated out-of-school children at the end of the five years would be 193,918," he said.

"The above followed the assumption that there would no new out-of-school children in these five years. All the children of school age will automatically enrol in school, following the compulsory years of schooling as enshrined in the UBEC Act," he said.

Meanwhile, the deputy chairman, House Committee on Education and Services, Ifeanyichukwu Ibezi, in his remarks, asked all participants at the retreat "to review and reflect on the content and quality of education the Nigerian child is currently receiving."

He said Nigeria "is in need of a functional educational system that would equip learners with requisite knowledge, attitude and skills to enable them relate and adapt successfully to the rapid socio-economic, cultural and political changes in the society."

Source: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/358236-nigeria-announces-plan-to-enrol-10-2-million-out-of-school-children.html

the estimated out-of-school children at the end of the five years would be 193,918," he said

"The above followed the assumption that there would no new out-of-school children in these five years.

That assumption entails you're willing to sanction parents for not sending kids to school. If you're not planning to do that you're projections are going be wrong.

The minister also said there will be 'crackdown' on substandard primary and secondary schools across the country.

What are you guys going to do if they dont meet standards?

We still have government schools across the country that are dilapidated, no proper school furniture for the children to sit, teachers who cannot speak English language fluently etc.


Why not focus on bringing all the government primary and secondary schools across the country to standard and see if voluntary enrollment will not increase.

All dis talk and talk govt.. Almajiri skools were built up north to encourage northern parents to allow their children go to skool free of charge but did dey? Majority of out of skool children are in d North and dey hide behind religion as their excuse.. Until we find a way to reduce d stranglehold religion has on dem we are only wasting our time... So long as d current system still favours d elites and political heavyweights from d region , d status quo will remain

Naija ....

Is LIKE Devil is Winning in this Country oooo

And some buharist fools will say he is working Hmmmmnnn Nigeria government and scam hope

Be
Like

Wailers must complain



President Buhari on the beat...

God bless President Muhammadu Buhari
God bless Federal Republic of Nigeria

Buhari yaff tried make we no lie. Best ever.

Talk is cheap government.
Well.. I pray for reverse to be the case this time around.

Chaiii!!!! SMH for this news, silent is the best answer......

Where are the schools??

Talk, talk, talk. Yet, we no dey see anything. They should start already. They don't need to talk. When they do it. People will talk for them.

I sell UK Men's shirts. Check my signature below for more details.

This people ain't planning for new addition in the coming years. The 10.5 million out of school children will not be constant for the next 5 years.

The same projection they used for N-power jobs.

He is the one that needs it most

Good

How is that possible with that budget that's low as a bottom line?

FG keep deceiving the gullible ones

Hmmmnn...

Sadly, realities on ground shows that Nigeria is not ready to do that in the next 20 years. If I'm to go by the current momentum in education, by 2030 we might have more than 12 million children out of school. Schools are grossly underfunded, teaching staffs are grossly inadequate, parents in slums and rural areas are becoming more reluctant to send their children to school AND ENSURE THEY GET EDUCATED.

Far from that, it's one thing to have children out of school, it's another thing to ensure children are getting educated. What we have in public schools is partial schooling and not even schooling nor education. So, Nigeria is still a joke.

Fg to do this, Fg to do that. Do it and tell us after, I am tired of we will government.

No be today bottom dey for back, is always easy to promise.

You mean northern people's born trowey?

wwwihy:
Wailers must complain



President Buhari on the beat...

God bless President Muhammadu Buhari
God bless Federal Republic of Nigeria

seems the Wailers you are talking about are the ones people in Nigeria with brains.
Cuz I don't think zombies do have brains.
That's why they see blue and call it black

What happened to other projects which have been abandoned?



Check my siggy for social media Promotions for your business

Blue3k:


Source: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/358236-nigeria-announces-plan-to-enrol-10-2-million-out-of-school-children.html

Government of Future Tense. This evil will not befall Nigerians again. God will show mercy to tribalism Nigerians.

That is how they promised thousands of schools before the election. We are no longer hearing that one again.

You should be talking about standardizing the existing states' owned schools, making it super affordable (if not free), and enforcing 'compulsory education'...

Nigeria/govt. Maximize it

Noted...

Thisis2raw:
seems the Wailers you are talking about is are the ones people in Nigeria with brains.
Cuz I don't think zombies do have brains.
That's why they see blue and call it black

"Sadism is not an infectious disease that strikes a person all of a sudden. It has a long prehistory in childhood and always originates in the desperate fantasies of a child who is searching for a way out of a hopeless situation." ~ Alice Miller

Goryous55:
Majority of out of skool children are in d North and dey hide behind religion as their excuse.. Until we find a way to reduce d stranglehold religion has on dem we are only wasting our time... So long as d current system still favours d elites and political heavyweights from d region , d status quo will remain

They are increasing in the South also, though it is unfortunate. Ebonyi and Oyo states are among the states with the highest number of out-of-school children