A coalition of Civil Society Organisations under the auspices of Education Champions Network which includes Ace Charity, Center LSD, SCAAD Initiative and LEDAP, funded by Malala fund, has called for the prioritisation of girl- child education in Adamawa state.
The organisation and picked holes in the free education policy of Fintiri’s administration and described it as defective.
They made their observations known Sunday at a town hall meeting of stakeholders in Yola. The meeting attracted lawmakers, policy makers, parents, teachers and other stakeholders where they presented the result of their research findings on the state of education in Adamawa with a call government and elected representatives at all levels to prioritise girl child education in their agenda.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Orinya Agbaji of the SCAAD Initiative, expressed serious concern over the sorry state of education in Adamawa state as revealed by their findings and called on the state government to eliminate all forms of hidden fees in schools across the state and other unwholesome practices going on in public schools which make mockery of the free education policy of the present administration.
He said apart from all manners of extortions in the name of different fees and levies being imposed on students by their schools, most schools in the rural areas were abandoned to their fate with decayed infrastructure, absence of facilities, unqualified and inadequate teachers, absenteeism among many others.
He said there is the need for government at all levels, especially Adamawa state government, to give special attention to the education sector.
