THE executive secretary of Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Hamid Bobboyi, has expressed the commitment of the Federal Government towards the provision of inclusive education in Nigeria.
Accordingly, Bobboyi said the commission is to partner with the National Commission for Persons With Disabilities (NCPWD) to improve the access and inclusion of children with disabilities in basic education.
He spoke in Abuja while meeting with the delegation from the National Commission for People With Disabilities (NCPWD) led by the Executive Secretary, Mr. James D. Lalu, the UBEC Head, Public Relations/Protocol Unit, David Apeh said.
Dr Bobboyi said UBEC, amongst its mandate, is saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that every child who is of age has access to quality basic education regardless of his/her disabilities or special needs.
For instance, a 2017 report on inclusive education by the World Bank and the Global Partnership for Education found that though literacy among children with learning disabilities has increased globally, these children remain severely excluded from educational policies and still lag far behind their peers. The study, conducted in 19 middle and low-income countries, concluded that three out of 10 children with disabilities have never enrolled in school and just about half of those who do enrol only complete primary school.
In Nigeria, which has the highest number of out-of-school children in the world, ascertaining the percentage of those with learning disabilities is next to impossible as official data is nonexistent. As such, any educational plan will most likely not address the needs of those with disabilities, pushing them further to the margins of society.
UBEC boss maintained that the partnership was coming at a time when UBEC has a proposed intervention called “Model Smart School” that will address the modern ICT needs.
He said, “the two commissions need to form a joint committee to address the various issues in physical access which include measurement of donors, toilet facilities and technical training for contractors among other things.”
He thanked the visiting executive secretary for the courtesy call and assured them of the commission’s commitment to the new partnership which will make a difference in the life of children with disabilities or special needs because education is not selective regardless of disabilities or special needs.
The NCPWD is a Federal Government established institution saddled with the responsibility of promoting and protecting the right of persons with disabilities in Nigeria.
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