The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, on Thursday, blamed the rising number of out-of-school children on the nation’s security challenges.
Speaking during the 66th National Council on Education meeting in Abuja, which had in attendance the 36 commissioners across the states, the Minister admitted that he failed to address the situation.
Available data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Nigeria has about 20 million out-of-school children.
“I came into office with the resolve to remove out-of-school children and I failed,” he said, charging commissioners to complement the Federal Government’s efforts in addressing the situation.
“The choice is very apt because we are not living in a situation where insecurity has virtually taken over everything, hence our children displaced.
“It is the responsibility of government at all levels to afford the right to education for all by ensuring that all barriers to education are removed.”
In his remark, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education, Senator Borrofice Ajayi, said the National Assembly will collaborate with the Federal Government in ensuring that every Nigerian has access to education.
“We in the National Assembly will investigate all the submissions by the various parastatals under the ministry and the ministry itself. We are going to ensure that the issue of security is taken seriously and adequately provided for,” he stated.
Challenging the commissioners to rise up to their responsibilities by providing a safe and secure learning environment for both students and teachers, the Minister said the Federal government and some states as well as the Federal Capital Territory have done their best to arrest situations of incessant attacks on schools while several other states are lagging behind.
Adamu urged the states to immediately domesticate the guidelines based on their circumstances.
According to him, states are responsible for the continued increase in the numbers of out-of-school Children (OSC) in Nigeria; adding that the figure has remained constant.
