PAULINE K. TALLEN, OFR, KSG AT THE 65TH NATIONAL COUNCIL ON EDUCATION HELD AT THE CAMP VIEW EVENT CENTRE, JALINGO, TARABA STATE ON THE 12TH AUGUST, 2021.
Protocols
To the glory of God, it is indeed heartwarming to be able to gather again at this 65th Edition of the National Council on Education in the face of the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic, which has been left in its trails tales of woes and pains. Like we always say, life will not stop for the Pandemic and so we must continue to move on.
In appreciation of life, I want to ask that you all join me as we observe a one-minute silence in honour of all those of our loved ones who lost their lives as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic. May their souls rest in peace.
As a critical partner in the crusade to contribute to a Nigeria Fit for All, this is the best place to be at this time. I, therefore, want to thank and congratulate my brothers and colleagues, the Honourable Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu and the Honourable Minister of State for Education, Hon. Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba for inviting me to this year’s edition of the National Council on Education.
The theme “Eradicating Out-Of-School Children Phenomenon: A Tool for the Achievement of Education 2030 Agenda”, resonates with the aspiration of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs towards promoting an enabling environment for improved child education, including the education of the girl-child in Nigeria.
Children represent a continuity of life, which is hinged on the progress of our Nation and must therefore be raised in a good environment that speaks to their formation through education and basic life-saving skills. Therefore, all hand must be on deck to ensure that every Nigerian child is in school. Eradicating Out-Of-School Children Phenomenon is a collective responsibility that cannot be left only to Government, hence families and society must mobilize to support the goal. This can only be done through strategic partnership and collaboration as evidenced in my presence here today to support my brothers at this Meeting. I want to appeal to the State Commissioners of Education to work closely with their Women Affairs counterparts and civil society organizations, as well as religious groups to achieve the aim. We may not be able to completely eradicate it, but we can reduce it to its barest minimum if we all commit to it.
It is estimated that girls constitute the highest number of the 13.5 million out of school children and those not receiving any form of training. It is most worrisome that despite ongoing good initiatives in the education sector, the situation seems to be deferring solutions. Several pull and push factors have been attributed to this.
In demonstrating our commitment to this goal, the Ministry had in June 2021 organized a National Policy Dialogue on Ending Violence Against Children in Nigeria in collaboration with UNICEF and other partners. This programme provided a platform for the Federal Government of Nigeria to recommit to ending violence against children with an emphasis on 7 key areas of commitment. In the words of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who was represented by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, GCON “The Government remains committed to implementing the recommendations of its recent convenings on Financing Safe Schools in Nigeria and ensuring that no child shall be subjected to physical, mental or emotional injury, abuse, neglect or maltreatment, or subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
In the face of crisis, as recently witnessed with the spike in gender-based violence during lockdown measures put in place by the Government to curb the ravaging effects of COVID-19, the girl-child and women were most affected. We have had an increase in the number of reported cases of child molestation, (especially girls) in schools by caregivers, sex for marks (even at secondary levels), rape of young girls on the way to school, poor water, hygiene and sanitation conditions, which keep girls out of school during their menstrual cycles. Other factors include early marriages, cultism, drug abuse, ignorance on the part of parents, hidden charges on the cost of education, even when education is said to be free, kidnapping for ransom, targeting girls and recent boys as weapons of war, general insecurity, poor quality of teachers, poor infrastructure, etc.
In continuation of our pursuit to implement the National Strategy to End Child Marriage 2016, which is currently undergoing review, we have obtained approval from the Office of Head of Civil Service of the Federation for the creation of the Girl-Child Development Division under the Child Development Department of the Ministry to provide a specific institutional mechanism for addressing issues regarding the girl child in Nigeria. We have also embarked on intensive advocacies and sensitizations to State Governors, Wives of Governors, traditional leaders, Honourable Speakers of State House of Assembly of the States yet to pass the Child Rights Act into law to do so in the best interest of the Nigerian child.
Ladies and gentlemen, you will agree with me that poverty has been a major factor in child marriage in the Country. As a Ministry saddled with the onerous responsibilities to improve the lives and livelihood of Nigerian women, children and other vulnerable groups, we are implementing a lot of innovative programmes and activities deliberately designed to address lack and want among the vulnerable population especially women, children and families in distress. One of such is the Launch of an encompassing project tagged "Campaign to Support Girl-Child Education in Nigeria," in 2020. One of the falls out of this is our recent launch of the Emergency Pad Bank to cater for the needs of women and girls during their monthly menstruation period in emergency situations as part of activities to mark the 2021 Menstrual Hygiene Day. It is important that this is replicated in all schools and workplaces at the State and Local Government levels.
As a nation, there are daunting security challenges, mistrust and ethnic cleavages, but we must come together beyond our traditional and tribal differences and work towards advancing concrete actions to interact, develop action plans and establish a network for effective partnership among stakeholders to support President Muhammadu Buhari to achieve the goal of the Next Level Agenda.
I thank you all, Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria. God bless you all.
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