As he gave scholarship award to 175 students in Kaduna on Monday, Senator representing Kaduna Central, Malam Uba Sani has lamented that, education in Northern Nigeria is in serious crises.
Uba Sani, who tasked Northern leaders and elites on education development, said that if they fail to take education seriously and address its challenges, the future of the region and Nigerian children would have been mortgaged.
Presenting the scholarship award to the indigent students selected from 38 secondary schools within the Central Zone, Senator Sani said, the scholarship scheme was designed to assist brilliant children of the poor and vulnerable who may not be able to continue their educational pursuit owing to the inability of their parents to meet the demands for registration, examinations, tuition fees and important materials needed for their study.
He explained that, the programme done under the auspices of Uba Sani Foundation, is deliberate and strategic, urging the students to continue to be hardworking while assuring them of the Foundation’s continued support beyond this level.
“A recent survey conducted by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) indicates that, the population of out of school children in Nigeria has risen from 10.5 million to 13.2 million, the highest in the world. Most of the children are out of school while some have never been to school.
“Of this outrageous population of out of school children, about 70% are in the North of Nigeria. This is quite disturbing and must worry all of us who still care for the North and Nigeria in general.
“The Kaduna state government has made education a key priority. It has effectively been implementing measures aimed at addressing the huge challenges facing education in the state. The infrastructure gaps in schools are being addressed, while qualified teachers have been recruited and deployed to urban and rural schools. Governor Nasir el-Rufai is indeed changing the face of education in Kaduna state.
“But challenges remain. The educational sector suffered decades of neglect and so cannot be re-engineered in a short time. It requires sustained attention and funding. Government cannot do it alone. We must all get involved. If we fail to take education seriously and address its challenges, we shall end up mortgaging the future of our children, and by implication the future of our country.
“Let us stop the lamentations. Let us get fully involved in educational development. Adopt a school and help to lift it to higher standards infrastructure wise. Adopt an indigent student and take responsibility for his or her schooling. Increasing the population of the educated is the surest way of fast-tracking the development of the North and Nigeria in general.
“As we leave here today, let us go into our communities as champions and sponsors of education. With determination and commitment we can turn things around in Kaduna state and indeed the entire North. Let us make education for all a fundamental right. It is the sustainable path to progress and development.”
Photos caption: Cross section of students and their teachers from 38 Kaduna schools awarded scholarship by Uba Sani Foundation on Monday.
