Bauchi State Council of Emirs and Chiefs to lead the campaign on Out of School Children phenomenon.
The Six Emirs of Bauchi State, together with Bauchi UNICEF Chief of Field among other Education Stakeholders in the state in a group Photograph at the 1-day meeting on 2024 EDC.
By Abubakar Baba Ahmad.
The Bauchi State Council of Emirs and Chiefs has expressed commitment to support government and Development Partners drive in returning the six hundred and eighty thousand Out of School Children OoSC and dropouts across the state.
The Council has Six First Class Emirs to include that of Bauchi, Katagum, Misau, Jama’are, Ningi and Dass.
The Chairman of the Council and Emir of Bauchi Dr Rilwanu Sulaiman Adamu made the commitment at a 1-day State Level Consultative meeting on the 2024/25 Enrolment Drive Campaign EDC for OoSC organised by SUBEB in collaboration with the Council of Traditional Leaders and UNICEF Bauchi Field Office at Emir’s palace Bauchi.
“I want to restate the commitment of the Council and hope that all issues raised and deliberated here would be implemented to the latter, especially as it relates to teachers performing their assigned responsibilities, parents bringing their wards to school and facilities protected from theft and vandalism”, the Emir remarks.
Dr Rilwanu Adamu who acknowledged the need for synergy among all stakeholders and the community to overcome the challenges in the education sector, reassured of the council’s commitment to ensure that all teachers perform their duties optimally, parents send their children to school and traditional leaders at various levels are mobilise for the success of the campaign.
In their separate contributions, the Emir of Misau Alhaji Ahmed Suleiman and Emir of Dass Alhaji Usman Bilyaminu Othman stressed the need for education authorities to prioritise the role of traditional institutions in advancing the cause of education in the state.
They called for close monitoring and supervision of teaching and learning activities, sanctioning and punishing of erring education staff and strengthening of security mechanisms in schools to prevent vandalism of infrastructure and other facilities.
Earlier, the Bauchi Chief of Field Office UNICEF Nigeria Dr. Nuzhat Rafique, called on the traditional institutions to advocate for the holistic implementation and rollout of the State Child Protection Law 2023, increasing investment in education from the current budgetary allocation of 16 percent to a minimum of 20 percent, recruitment and deployment of qualified teachers among others.
“I appreciate the government of Bauchi State under the leadership of His Excellency, Senator Bala Abdulkadir Muhammad for the continued partnership with UNICEF to improve the education outcomes in the state; most importantly, acknowledging the role of our traditional institutions to support the state 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”, the UNICEF BCFO says.
Dr. Nuzhat Rafique appealed for concerted effort to overcome the obstacles preventing consistent learning achievements to include inadequate evidence-based policy and planning, significant shortages of qualified teachers and classrooms, poor infrastructure, poor teachers’ remuneration, cultural norms, health and safety worries, and dependence on children for income and household tasks.
“In collaboration with the Universal Basic Education Commission, we have developed the “National Framework of Action to Reduce the Number of Out-of-School Children in Nigeria” and “Framework of Action for Improved Learning Outcome” which ensures inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. These frameworks are a clear guide for addressing the root causes of out-of-school and improved learning outcomes, She notes.
The State Commissioner of Education Dr Jamila Dahiru represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry Alhaji Ali Babayo appreciated development partners and all critical stakeholders for their commitment towards reversing the negative indices in the education sector.
In a remark, the Executive Chairman SUBEB Alhaji Adamu Duguri admitted that education and security deteriorated when the traditional institutions were relegated to the background, stressing that for the state to bring back the lost glory of education, traditional leaders must be placed at the forefront of the campaign to achieve the set targets.
“One of the many problems we are facing in the basic education sub sector is the lack of ownership of facilities by communities and this has become so troubling, which is why I am calling on the State Assembly to enact laws that would punish the people stealing amd vandalising school facilities “, He appeals.
Adamu Duguri disclosed that the present administration is building Mega Schools to address the growing number of OoSC and soon the board will establish Focal Offices for each of the emirates to ensure easier access to the traditional institutions in policy formulation and implementation.
On his part, the Chairman State Assembly Committee on Education Dr Nasir Ahmad Ala who said a bill is in the pipeline to address the activities of Scrap Scavengers in the state, called for the integration and recognition of Qur’anic schools as formal education centres.
