The Lagos State Authorities has referred to as for the enactment of contraception legislation to deal with the menace of out-of-school kids in Nigeria.
Mr Jamiu Alli-Balogun, Lagos Commissioner for Fundamental and Secondary Schooling, made the decision on the sideline of a two-day regional stakeholders assembly.
The assembly which was held in Ibadan, from Aug. 12 to Aug. 14, had as its theme: Youngsters Retention, Transition and Completion, fashions for the South-west States.
The Information Company of Nigeria (NAN) studies that the assembly was organised by the United Nations Worldwide Youngsters’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in collaboration with Oyo State Ministry of Schooling.
The assembly was attended by commissioners for schooling, non secular leaders and civil societies from Lagos, Ondo, Osun, Ogun, Ekiti and Oyo States respectively.
Alli-Balogun, who recommended UNICEF for the initiative, mentioned that the problem of out-of-school kids was a world concern and never peculiar to Nigeria.
The commissioner mentioned that there was have to sort out the the menace from the foundation.
“The difficulty of out-of-school kids might be approached by making use of contraception measures in Nigeria.
“If we hold giving start with out management and with restricted sources then we can not make progress.
“Subsequently, authorities on the federal degree ought to enact a legislation establishing what a median household measurement ought to be in Nigeria.
“But when we don’t try this, we are going to proceed to be in the identical drawback”, he mentioned.
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Alli-Balogun, nevertheless, mentioned that the Lagos State Authorities had deployed measures to curb the menace within the state.
In keeping with him, Lagos State Authorities strives to get the kids out of the road with the help of different stakeholders.
The commissioner mentioned, “we now have put in place measures to minimise the menace. The Mission O, that’s zero tolerance for out-of-school kids.
“By means of this venture, we fight poverty by empowering dad and mom with the power to ship their kids to high school.
“We’re constructing extra colleges and school rooms with the collaboration of different stakeholders.
“We aren’t resting on our achievements. We’ll stay dedicated as a result of the truth that each single youngster issues to us as clearly acknowledged by UNICEF.
He suggested that the Faculty feeding programme of the federal authorities for the fundamental major colleges be activated to draw extra kids to high school and make the atmosphere extra conducive.
“This issue is available, the federal authorities has completed it previously and it was efficient.
“If the federal authorities can in all probability create a budgetary line for it in our schooling system right down to the state degree, it is going to be a welcome fortune for states in addressing out-of-school kids.
“The extra we harness extra sources, the extra we handle the kids and enhance our instructional governance in Nigeria”, he mentioned.
Earlier, Azuka Mentiki , UNICEF Schooling Specialist, mentioned that the company would proceed to create an enabling atmosphere to strengthen the states for college students to have entry to high quality schooling.
Additionally, Mr Muhammad Okorie, Officer-in-charge, UNICEF Lagos workplace, mentioned that high quality schooling was a proper of each youngster.
Okorie mentioned that stakeholders within the schooling sector should agree on a workable mannequin to minimise the menace of out-of-school kids within the nation.
“This assembly creates an enabling atmosphere for southwest states to design a mannequin that may work because it issues youngster’s retention, transition and completion.
“And that is the mandate of UNICEF,” he mentioned.
In his remarks, Mr Hamzat Omolaja, Director, Social Mobilisation, Lagos State Common Fundamental Schooling Board (SUBEB), described the assembly as laudable.
Omolaja mentioned that suggestions from the assembly could be helpful to stakeholders.
“UNICEF has been making efforts in direction of making certain that each youngster have entry to schooling. In Lagos, we now have a slogan in SUBEB referred to as, ‘Go away no Little one behind’.
“The ‘go away no Little one behind’ is to make sure that each youngster that’s of college age is enrolled within the system.
“And that’s the reason since 2020, we now have been engaged on ‘Mission 0’ which implies, zero tolerance for out-of-school kids,” he mentioned.
