Adamawa State Statistician-General, Alloysius Nagarawa, has declared that the National Education Data Survey (NEDS) report for 2015 showed that 239,561 children were out of school adding that it was a regrettable situation.
The Statistician-General also lamented that the State is facing some daunting challenges in the education sector following the increasing number of out of school children a situation he opined adequate and timely planning and budgets could help in addressing.
He was speaking at a training organized by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) in conjunction with the Adamawa State Planning Commission for Heads of some key line Government ministries, departments and agencies in Adamawa State held in Gombe on Wednesday.
The training was organized in order to ensure that children got a better budgetary allocation in 2022, on how to make budgets that will better capture social issues that had continued to keep children vulnerable.
In her address, The Executive Secretary of the Adamawa Planning Commission, Dr Mary Paninga said that the essence of the training was to build the capacity of the line MDAs on how to make relevant inclusions, sustainable allocations in the 2022 budget to address children’s issues using the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) model.
She also said that the State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, recently signed a document on the situation of the Adamawa Child adding that the training will go a long way in giving direction on the attention to be given to Children’s welfare.
Some of the participants who shared their minds with our correspondent expressed their expectations and commitment saying, Government is expected to focus more on children for a better future.
Mr Helda Moses, Director Recording and Settlement in the Debt Management Agency, Adamawa State, who spoke on behalf of the Director-General, Usman Moddibo Saleh, said that whenever Government need to borrow, spending such funds should have a focus on children.
On his expectations, he said that, if things were gotten right in budgeting, in the next three years, there will be better hospitals and many other facilities that will better the lives of women and children.
“When women and children go to upgraded hospitals, everything has been subsidized for them, in the next three years, you will see a better Adamawa State,” he said.
On the part of the legislature, Mr Clarkson Gajere, Secretary, House standing committee on Finance, Appropriation and Budget, Adamawa State House of Assembly, said that the MTEF document is what guides the MDA’s in their budget estimates for the next financial year.
He also said that the House assess the approval of the main budget itself as it will guide the legislature about the production being made by the MDA’s when the budget is being taken to the House for final approval, funds are then allocated based on the genuineness of the estimates.
The legislator added that “That is why the legislature is being represented in the preparation of the MTEF document. We give priorities to the needed sectors, for instance, the children issues.”
He assured that, “When the budget is approved proper, the sectors where children are involved, for instance, health, child development, PHC meant for women and children, the legislature will consider the needs at those levels and sectors and make adequate approvals.”
Earlier, UNICEF Bauchi Field Office Social Policy Specialist, Yusuf Auta, gave the participants an overview of MTEF, processes and why the MTEF document is important, when to prepare, how to prepare among many other issues that affect children.
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