FORMER President Olusegun Obasanjo, on Saturday, declared that in Nigeria today, over 14 million children that should be in school were not in school, and thereby deprived of education. Obasanjo made this known in Lagos at the virtual 2020 Fellowship Graduation Ceremony of the second cohort of “Teach for Nigeria Fellows”.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that “Teach For Nigeria”, an NGO, graduated 161 fellows who have impacted approximately 9,660 students in 80 schools across Lagos, Ogun, and the Kaduna States. NAN reports that “Teach For Nigeria” focuses on developing a movement of leaders across Nigeria who are committed to putting an end to educational inequity.
Obasanjo said: “They are deprived of opportunities that will allow them to develop their abilities and become useful to themselves and their communities. “It is evident that at this point, to transform our education system in a sustainable way, Nigerian youths must take up leadership positions.”
According to him, our youths must champion different innovative solutions at every level of the society and across different sectors. “It is inspiring to see the work that ‘Teach For Nigeria’ is doing to equip promising future leaders with the skills and experience to drive the change that we need,” the former president said.
He added that the leaders had dedicated their time, energy and resources to inspire love for learning, improved educational outcomes, and enhanced life opportunities for children in the classrooms. “As a result of your commitment, your pupils have succeeded at various academic and non-academic competitions.
“I recently learnt about pupils of ‘Teach For Nigeria Fellows’ who came second in the National Lafarge Competition and other scholarship opportunities. “They also initiated actions by working with stakeholders such as parents, community members, heads of schools and other teachers,” Obasanjo said. He, however, advised the fellows to continue to leverage their acquired skills and experiences to advocate for educational excellence in the country.
The former president urged them to be ambassadors for change, driving the movement for freedom and justice in Nigeria. “I strongly advise that you remain resilient in your fight for educational equity, not relenting on the strides of deploying solutions to tackle the myriads of problems confronting our education system.
“Please do not let anybody tell you that you are leaders of tomorrow, you are leaders today,” Obasanjo said. Also, Folawe Omikunle, the Chief Executive Officer, Teach For Nigeria, said that graduating fellows had spent the past two years improving the academic outcomes of their pupils.
Omikunle said that they ignited the love for learning in these pupils, instilling self-belief, successfully galvanizing parental and community support to aid pupils learning process. “The graduating 161 fellows are joining our maiden set of 44 Alumni members, thereby bringing the number of our Alumni network to 205 members.
“Teach For Nigeria is a lifelong commitment in the fight against educational inequity. “We are positive that our Alumni will continue to work toward ensuring that one day we have a Nigeria where every child can attain an excellent education,” she said.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
North May Back Atiku In 2023 — Yakassai •Says APC should pick Southerner as presidential candidate •‘Tinubu better than Buhari who has no plan’
IF former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, contests for the presidency in the next general election in 2023, the majority of the votes from the North will go to him, elder statesman and politician, Alhaji Tanko Yakassai, has said. Yakassai, a former Liaison Officer to former President Shehu Shagari, described both Abubakar and former Lagos State governor, Senator Bola Tinubu, as potential 2023 presidential contenders…
Buhari Suspends Babalakin As UNILAG Pro-Chancellor, Sacks Acting Vice-Chancellor
President Muhammadu Buhari has suspended the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Governing Council of University of Lagos (UNILAG), Dr Wale Babalakin, SAN and the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, over the lingering crisis…
‘I Lived As A Beggar. I Begged To Eat, I Begged To Wear Clothes, I Even Begged To Put My Head Under A Roof’
EMMANUELLA Udeh had just finished peeling melon inside the one-storey building she lives in when Saturday Tribune called. Surrounded by a calm environment in Emene, Enugu East Local Government Area of Enugu State, the 39-year-old paraplegic recounted her experience since she was disengaged as a beneficiary of N-Power, a scheme set up by the Federal Government to address the issues of youth unemployment and…
We Pay N250,000 Bribe Per Trip, Lagos Truck Owners Cry Out
On Monday last week, the Lagos State government staved off a planned strike by the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Association (PTDA) in the state over alleged extortion of its members by security operatives and hoodlums in the course of conducting their lawful business…
and then