Students who excelled at the seventh Raising Girls Ambition (RAGA) conference held last year have been presented with awards at a ceremony held at the Oyo State Ministry of Education on Wednesday.
The organisers of RAGA have also appealed to the ministry to fulfil its promises earlier made.
RAGA is a cardinal project of the Global Youth Leadership and Girl-child Foundation (GYLGF).
The students who won awards participated in debate, quiz and essay competitions.
Dr Adepeju Oti, the founder of GYLGF and convener of RAGA, said: “Today, we are here to project our work to the ministry in our usual manner, to reward our young stars who excelled at the last 7th RAGA Conference, in debate, quiz and essay competitions.
“We have certificates of attendance, cash token and certificates for participating schools. The competition was not keen because attendance was very poor.
“We therefore use this medium to seek for more cooperation and coordination with the ministry.”
Dr Oti added that, “Although RAGA Conference may be leaving Nigeria for another African country; other programmes focused at secondary schools only will replace it.
She recalled that “During the era of Professor Sangodoyin, we were promised that the ministry will collaborate with us on the proposed ‘Schools Debate’ and other competitions that will engage the students in the spirit of healthy competition and cognitive alertness. We believe that government is continuous, hence this laudable idea should be vigorously pursued.
“Moreover, we seek the approval of the Hon. Commissioner to establish RAGA Ambassadors Club in schools that have participated at the conference, for continuity and sustainability.
“For subsequent programmes, we would like the Hon. Commissioner to issue us a letter of approval early enough as well as mobilise schools to attend in large numbers.
“We would like the Hon. Commissioner to launch the Breaking Boundaries Book and purchase for schools in the state.”
Responding, the Commissioner for Education, Rahman Abiodun Abdul-Raheem, expressed his delight with the organisers of RAGA for promoting an independent mindset in the girl-child. He however noted the need for cooperation between the sexes for mutual development and societal growth.
Abdul-Raheem also promised that the ministry would fulfill the outstanding promises made to GYLGF while pledging his ministry’s support for the foundation’s future programmes.
Some of the schools represented at the awards include All Saints College, Mustard Seed Schools, Bethel City College and Lead City International School, all in Ibadan.
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