Niger flags off BESDA, receives over N1.9 billion from World Bank

From Yakubu Mustapha, Minna.

The Minister of State for Education, Hon. Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, has urged beneficiary states of Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA) program in the country to ensure judicious use of the funds and be accountable in order to benefit more from the World Bank through the federal government.
He made the disclosure yesterday in Minna while flagging off BESDA program, adding that 17 out of the 36 states of the federation were beneficiaries of the program with the view to taking off many Nigerian children of school age roaming the streets.
Nwajiuba applauded president Muhammadu Buhari for ensuring that no Nigerian child will be deprived of quality education irrespective of their status.
He said that over 10 million out of school children in the country were targeted to benefit from the program and urged Niger state which had benefitted 6 million dollars to ensure full implementation of the program to improved its literacy rate.
The Niger State governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello said that the state has considered education as a major priority and recognize it as the foundation of a genuine sustainable development, shareed common aspirations with the federal government all for the transformation of education in Nigeria.
He maintained that “It is in view of this that our administration is making enormous investments in the educational sector with a view to strategically repositioning the sector to enable it contribute effectively to the socio-economic development of the state”.
Commissioner of Education, Hajiya Hannatu Jibrin Salihu, in her welcome address said that the state has changed the fortunes of almajiri children in the state through the program having taken them off the streets.
She assured of effective and efficient implementation of the program in the state and commended Governor Abubakar Dani Bello, World Bank and Federal Government for ensuring that the states affected benefitted from the facility.
The Niger state Chairman of SUBEB, Dr Isah Adamu in his welcome addressed said that BESDA has so far received 6million dollars equivalent of N1,933,750,000.00 in two tranches in May and August 2019 respectively.
He explained that in carrying out its mandates no fewer than 1,599 Almajiri centers were identified in 517 communities of the 15 focal local governments of the state with 206,093 out of school children were captured in which132,086 were males and 74,007 females.
Adamu also revealed that 72,553 out of school children were enrolled in the 367 selected Non formal education centers for the targeted of 47,934 out of school children in Niger state.