Following the abuses faced by internally displaced adolescent girls in Nigeria, the Vice Chancellor of David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, Uburu (DUFUHS), Professor Jesse Uneke, has called for the adoption of evidence informed policy making process in the development of educational policy on life skills education for the young displaced girls.
The VC stated this during a national stakeholders’ engagement organized by the African Institute for Health Policy and Health Systems (AIHPHS), Nigeria and Brooks Insights Ltd under the auspices of the Global Partnership for Education Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (GPE-KIX) with support from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Canada.
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The stakeholders were drawn from various ministries, agencies of government, including Federal Ministry of Education, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons in Nigeria (NCFRMI), National Secondary School Education Commission (NSSEC), FCT Public Health Department, Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Assembly Committees on Basic Education and House Committee on Internally Displaced Persons & Refugee, Representatives of Internally Displaced Persons among others.
Speaking on the project topic: “Building Resilience through Inclusive Development and Gender-responsive Life Skills Education for Internally Displaced Adolescents” (BRIDGE-IDAs)-Understanding the Evidence-to-Policy Reform Process, Prof Uneke, the Principal Investigator of the project reiterated the need to shift away from opinion-based policies and practices to a more rigorous, rational approach that gathers, critically appraises, and uses high-quality research evidence to inform educational policy-making, professional practice, and systems operations.
He stated this after some of the participants, including the women leader of Gongola IDP camp, Mrs John Stephen, noted the challenges at the IDP faced by children and you girls at the camp for a lack of education and other care.
Collaborating, the Co-Principal Investigators (Drs. Ejemai Eboreime and Chisom Obi-Jeff), the Project Coordinator Funmilayo Oguntimehin, said that Life Skills Education can provide adolescents IDPs with psychosocial, emotional, cognitive, behavioural, and resilience skills to navigate challenges, make informed decisions, and lead healthy, productive lives.
He disclosed that there are 3.3 million IDPs in Nigeria as of 2023, of which 60% are children/adolescents.
Also, the Director of Educational Planning, Research and Development, of Federal Ministry of Education, Mrs. O.J. Anigbogu, said the meeting has exposed the stakeholders on the development of a policy direction that will help the government to address the educational needs of the internally displaced persons in the country.
Furthermore, Mr. Nwafor Kisito from the National Assembly assured that the National Assembly has enacted a law that captures the welfare and needs of refugees, migrants, and IDPs, while Mrs. Ada Ogah, from the FCT Emergency Management Agency, disclosed that her office has been working with the IDPs for over ten years. She called on all stakeholders to do all that are necessary to improve the lives of the children, particularly the girls, in the IDP educationally.
Meanwhile, the woman leader of Gongola IDP camp, Mrs John Stephen, urged the government to help them “This workshop is very nice. If the government delivers all that has been said here, there won’t be IDP camps again.
“Our major challenge at the IDP camp is child abuse; some young girls are married at a tender age, because they can’t go to school; people are raping our young girls because of lack of education, lack of food, lack of healthcare and shelter. I am confident that this workshop will provide a solution so that everything will be okay,” she said.
The event attracted over 90 participants and featured lectures, group work, question and answer session.
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