The Federal Government has announced plans to reintegrate over one million out-of-school children into the formal education system across Nigeria.
The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Wednesday, at the 69th National Council on Education Summit in Akure, Ondo State, themed “Quality Education Data and Professionalisation of Teaching: Tools for Enhanced National Development.”
Alausa said the initiative, being implemented in collaboration with the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education, involves mapping and documenting children from 12,600 communities nationwide.
He explained that the programme targets children between the ages of seven and nine, who will be enrolled in low-cost private schools and training centres.
According to him, over 21,000 out-of-school children have already been identified across the Federal Capital Territory and handed over to the FCT Education Secretariat for enrolment.
He added that the ministry has established 109 functional learning centres and transit schools across the 36 states and the FCT, through which 15,224 learners have been enrolled so far.
“The ministry, in fulfilment of its mandate, set up a task force comprising the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education, the National Commission for Nomadic Education, and the National Commission for Mass Literacy and Non-Formal Education to document the extent of the problem.
“With support from UBEC, this task force mapped out over one million children of various ages from 12,600 communities across the country.
“Efforts have been made to put these children back to school by enlisting those between ages 6–9 into low-cost private schools, while others will be enrolled in schools and training centres in collaboration with the Almajiri Commission,” Alausa said.
The PUNCH