The Lagos State Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Mr. Jamiu Alli-Balogun has stressed the need for Nigeria to adopt birth control policy to stem the increasing rate of out-of-school children population in the country.
He says it is not until Nigeria makes and enforces such law limiting the number of children an individual, especially men can give birth to in their lifetimes that the country will witness a significant reduction in out-of-school children across the geo-political zones.
He says the manner by which some men and even women hide under religion and culture and give birth to children they know they have no means to take care of should be checked and discouraged through legislation.
The commissioner shared this thought and perspective with the Nigerian Tribune at a regional stakeholders’ meeting on Out-of-School Children, Retention, Transition and Completion of secondary education for children in the Southwest zone.
The meeting held in Ibadan was put together by UNICEF in conjunction with the Oyo State Ministry of Education and has commissioners for education, Chairmen of State Universal Basic Education Boards, civil society groups, lawmakers, religious and community leaders and newsmen from across Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Lagos and Oyo in attendance.
Emphasising the importance of Birth Control Act in a country like Nigeria, Alli-Balogun said that even though there is no country globally that can achieve zero out-of-school children, the number can be reduced to the barest minimum.
He asked the Federal Government to take a cursory look at this suggestion and make it a law while various state governments would domesticate it.
According to him, such a law will greatly help Nigeria to meaningfully overcome
out-of-school children and the various associated socio-economic challenges.
Referencing that a country like Saudi Arabia which is propagating Islam more than any other country globally has a birth control policy in operation, the commissioner declared that nothing should stop Nigeria from doing the same.
He said Nigeria’s huge out-of-school children population is not about the government but individuals wondering why somebody should give birth to children and leave them on the streets at the mercy of the public.
“For me, that is a bad culture that needs to be checked,” he stressed.
The commissioner pointed out that it is not only worrisome but embarrassing that the Southwest geopolitical zone, which is known time immemorial as an educationally advantaged region in the country is now flooded with many out-of-school children.
He traced the development to multiple factors, particularly the influx of migrants including school-age children from other regions and neighbouring countries on daily basis to the zone and Lagos State in particular.
According to him, many people are attracted to Lagos for either economic reasons or because of the peaceful environment while yet some come underage with no clear mission.
He declared that even though there are many existing laws including Child Rights Act designed to protect children and ensure their well-being anywhere they are, these laws are simply less effective as they focus on children and not parents.
“That is why the issue of good parenting is also important to address this concern,” he declared.
Referencing the US, he said,” You can’t give birth to a child in the US and not take care of him or her.
“The law makes it mandatory for parents, especially men once their DNAs are confirmed to be responsible for the upkeep of their children.
“That is the standard there and Nigeria can equally go in that direction.”
He said all these legislations would significantly support the efforts of government at various levels and other relevant stakeholders on out-of-school children in the country.
He noted that Lagos State, for example, has adopted different approaches including Zero Project or Leave No Child Behind policy to address the out-of-school-children and has now scaled up aggressively to address the menace.
According to him, we are more aggressive now with our campaign to bring out-of-school children back to school by using radio advertisements in four popular languages in the state which are Pidgin, Egun, Yoruba and Ijebu to capture every Lagosian.
He also noted that the government is building more schools, equipping the existing ones with necessary infrastructure, recruiting new teachers and also giving operational license to more private schools.
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