According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Nigeria has the highest number of out-of-school children in the world. This is both alarming and scary! About 10.5 million children are out of school in Nigeria. To put things in perspective, 10.5 million is about the population of Libya and Liberia put together. The danger we harbour therefore is that we may be building a nation of unenlightened, ill-informed and ill-equipped individuals for the future.

Describing the situation, UNICEF says “Nigeria’s population growth has put pressure on the country’s resources, public services and infrastructure. With children under 15 years of age accounting for 45 per cent of the 171 million population, the burden on education has become overwhelming.” To be sure, little progress has been made, even as UNICEF also admits that: “Primary school enrolment has increased in recent years, but net attendance is only about 70 per cent.” Still, the country’s number of out-of-school children at 10.5 million is the highest in the world. To the discerning, we cannot set for ourselves the goal of becoming the largest economy in Africa and a leading one globally while contending with such grim statistics with regards to early childhood care and education. It is simply unacceptable.

The instructive words of former United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, are most apt here. He said: “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society….” By all means, the new phase in our historical journey as a nation, ushered in by the 4th Republic in 1999, has led to some measure of success, even amidst interjections that may have ruffled the very fabric of our nationhood. 18 years of uninterrupted civil rule; continued efforts at deepening the tenets of democracy and rule of law; hitch-free transition of power; expansion of the economy and increase in GDP size are all signposts of our modest progress. But we cannot continue on the newly defined journey of economic recovery and growth whilst leaving 10.5 million of our children out of what should actually be a collective march. This is why we need to urgently address the signs of imminent danger before they catch up with us in the near future.

Nigeria was a signatory to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The second major goal of the MDGs was achievement of universal primary education. The target informed by this important goal was to ensure that all children are at least able to conclude a full course of primary schooling. The Universal Basic Education Programme (UBE) was the strategy developed by Nigeria to promote universal primary education. According to the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), UBE “is a nine (9) year basic educational programme, which was launched and executed by the government and people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to eradicate illiteracy, ignorance and poverty as well as stimulate and accelerate national development, political consciousness and national integration.” What this suggests is that Nigeria is not bereft of ideas to get our 10.5 million out-of-school children back into classrooms. How then did we find ourselves in a situation where we have the highest number of out-of-school children?

We clearly missed out on delivery of the MDGs, especially in the area of education. We however have a chance to make up for the inadequacies of the past through spirited and committed efforts to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the successor to the MDGs and also an initiative of the United Nations. Education is again a critical focus of the SDGs with its fourth goal emphasising the need to: “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” Here, the vision has gone a step further to insist that access to education for all children of school age is not the destination; we must further ensure qualitative education is delivered and the duration is completed. The task before us is therefore clear and definitive: we need to ensure every Nigerian child has access to, and is able to complete qualitative basic education.

To be honest, the Federal Government, in conjunction with some states in the country, has initiated the home-grown school feeding programme to promote enrolment at the primary school level. Studies from different parts of the world have shown the promise inherent in school feeding programmes and initial feedbacks suggest that some level of success is being recorded here in Nigeria as well. But a realisation of the enormity of the task at hand should inform the need to do more, and hurriedly too.

The starting point is to agree a time by which our 10.5 million out-of-school children would be back in classrooms. The next level is to ensure that in the future no Nigerian child is unable to go to school. Going forward therefore, we need a firm and concrete plan informed by a central objective. We need to set timelines and we need to define evaluation criteria and milestones. Finally, we need to determine resources required and designate responsibilities among critical stakeholders; which should naturally include: the Federal Government, State Governments, the Legislature, Organised Private Sector, Civil Society, Faith Bodies and International Development Partners.

The global space is today being shaped by knowledge-based economies, emphasising the fact that knowledge is the key driver of productivity and growth.  Countries that must transition to the next phase of development can only do so through knowledge. Universal primary education is the foundation we need to create for future development. The 2004 National Policy on Education (which stipulates a basic 9-year compulsory education for all children) and renewed commitment to school feeding programme are good pillars we must build on.

Accordingly:

1. Federal and state governments need to massively refurbish and equip schools to make them conducive for learning. (They can partner with organised private sector through “adoption of schools” programme.)
2. The Federal Ministry of Education must redefine basic education curriculum in a way that prepares children for skills required for the future – the focus here must be on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM majors).
3. We must aggressively pursue re-training and certification programmes for teachers so they can acquire the requisite skills for effective teaching.
4. We must enforce the compulsory basic education policy for children of school age by (perhaps) introducing punitive measures for defaulting parents.

At the heart of the democratic system of governance is the principle of liberty. Edward Everett however reminded us that “Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army.” As we commemorate 18 years of uninterrupted democratic governance, we must, as a people, make a solemn commitment to get our 10.5 million out-of-school children into classrooms.

LET US PRAY

Dear God, we thank You for the promise inherent in our youth population. This promise gives us hope for a better, rewarding future; but we do not take it for granted that we need to prepare and equip our children for the future we desire. We therefore pray that You provide us with the knowledge, resources and wherewithal required to develop our children into future leaders.