In its effort to address the menace of out-of-school children in the area, authorities in Jama’are local government area of Bauchi State inaugurated a task force to enrol street kids back to school.
According to a UNESCO 2022 data, Bauchi State has the highest number of out-of-school children in Nigeria with about 1.2 million children projected to be out of school. UNICEF raises concern over the growing number of children out of formal learning institutions in the state. The global body expressed fear that more girls in Alkaleri local government continue to quit school.
However, some poor peasant parents from Alkaleri argued that their children dropped out of school to help with farm chores because they could not afford to pay their tuition fees and other educational materials. Similarly, WikkiTimes in an investigative report, documented how the lack of toilet facilities coupled with decayed infrastructure kept menstruating girls at Yakubun Bauchi College of Islamic Studies away from class for days.
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Abdullahi Inuwa, Caretaker Committee Chairman of Jama’are Local Government, inaugurated a task force on out-of-school children enrolment drive and back-to-school campaign in the area.Â
He called on members of the task force to bring their wealth of knowledge and experience to bear in the discharge of their assignment to help enrol all out-of-school children in the area back to classes.
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Inuwa assured of the council’s support to fast-track their performance towards ensuring that all children are back to school to be given quality basic education. Â
He said Jama’are Local Government is committed to delivering quality BASIC education to citizens through judicious utilization of available resources for the implementation of educational policies that will foster gender inclusion, promote equity, deliver quality learning and guarantee safe and violence-free schooling for all citizens in the state.
“We want to assure you that Jama’are Local Government under my leadership is determined to support his government’s goal of making Bauchi State a centre of educational excellence, where every kid has the chance to obtain a top-notch education that equips them with  the capacity to face the challenges of the 21st century.”
On his part, the Emir of Jama’are, Alhaji Nuhu Ahmed Wabi commended the caretaker chairman for his foresight to inaugurate the task force and promised to work together tirelessly for a brighter tomorrow.
WikkiTimes recalls that about two weeks ago, the state Governor, Bala Mohammed flagged off the enrollment drive campaign in collaboration with UNICEF.
“Our goal as a government is to make Bauchi State a centre of educational excellence, where every kid has a chance to obtain a top-notch education that equips them with the capacity to face the challenges of the 21st century,” the governor told members of the Enrollment Drive Committee.
Idris Kamal Ibrahim is a dedicated reporter with WikkiTimes, specialising in fact-checking, investigative journalism, and solutions-focused reporting. His commitment to uncovering the truth and addressing societal issues in Northern Nigeria has earned him several prestigious journalism fellowships, highlighting his expertise and impact in the field.