The out-of-school crisis

Minister of Education, Alhaji Adamu Adamu, penultimate Thursday expressed worry over the “alarming rise” in the number of out-of-school children in the country. Speaking during the opening of the 65th National Council on Education (NCE) meeting in Jalingo, Taraba State, with the theme, “Eradicating Out-Of-School Children Phenomenon: A Tool For The Achievement Of Education 2030 Agenda,” Adamu said the problem “must be tackled immediately” by all stakeholders.

The minister said going by the survey conducted by the United Nations Children Education Fund (UNICEF), Nigeria led other countries with out-of-school-children. Represented by Minister of State Chukwuemeka Nwajiwuba, Adamu pegged the figure at about 10.1 million.

According to him, “Aside from other fundamental factors such as poverty, cultural and religious beliefs, the recent occurrences in the country’s education system such as kidnapping of pupils/students, increased insurgence and general insecurity in schools have fueled some of the factors responsible for the present situation.”

Moving forward, Adamu stated, “For the government and stakeholders to record a landmark achievement, the education system would require a total overhaul in provision of a safe and secured environment for learners and teachers among other things they must do.” According to him, the Federal Government has launched Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA), piloted in 17 states, to tackle the problem.

He noted that the government was also establishing more schools and “doing everything” to improve the welfare of teachers among other measures it was taking to “curtail the ugly trend.”

Firstly, Adamu was only reminding everyone that the problem was not new, not one created by the present government. It was there before it was brought to power and probably will still be after it leaves office because it isn’t a problem that can be solved overnight. Adamu called it an “ugly trend”. So it is.

Secondly, the majority of the out-of-children are found in the North. The causes are historical, religious and socio-economic. These are compounded by today’s security challenges.

The government has been doing its best possible to mitigate the security crisis. The Book Haram insurgency in the northeast that wrecked the region’s school system has been all but ended. Schools are being rebuilt and new ones constructed. Child enrollment is on the up.

However, mass poverty is still a big problem. Poor breadwinners are unable to send many of their children to school all at once. Governments in the north have abolished fees in order to boost enrollment, but this is only a drop of water in the ocean.

Thirdly, we must not forget that “the menace” isn’t for government alone to deal with. As Adamu said, all stakeholders in the education system must come together to confront the crisis in it.