FG tackling out-of-school children syndrome ‘vigorously’ – UBEC

THE executive secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Hameed Bobboyi, has said that the current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is addressing the challenge of out-of-school children vigorously.

Nigeria’s out-of-school children are estimated to be about 10.5 million, with majority of them coming from the North.

Bobboyi, in an interview with Tribune Education, said the federal government was more than ever before determined to ensure that opportunity is provided for every Nigerian child to be in school.

He disclosed that the federal government was working in synergy with state governments, which are directly in charge of basic education, to increase school enrolment through provision of various facilities for accommodation and incentives for retention of children in schools.

He said: “The need to ensure synergy between the federal and state governments in ensuring that attention is paid to the basic education sector led to the establishment of UBEC, to see how it could work with the state governments in providing basic education for the citizens.

“You understand that the federal government does not own a single primary school, with the exception of the Unity Schools or Federal Government Colleges; and it doesn’t employ a single teacher.

“So, unless we work together, build the synergy between the state and federal in our systems, it will be difficult to achieve success. Much progress has been achieved, particularly in some states.

“Transition rate from primary to junior secondary schools has also improved, though we still have challenges; challenges of out-of-school children, and we are addressing that vigorously to ensure that we provide those opportunities for every Nigerian child to be in school.”

He added that school feeding is one area that the federal government is exploring to promote school attendance and retention of children in schools.

“School feeding promotes school attendance, because without a child being healthy, he or she cannot go to school. But once a child is provided some kind of nutritious meal per day, he or she will be available to continue with a lot of difference.

“The nutritional health of a child enhances the child’s ability to comprehend what is being taught within the four walls of a class. The current administration has put in place a more realistic school feeding system under the Office of the Vice President as part of the Social Investment Programme and a lot have been archived.”