The Kaduna Basic Education Accountability Mechanism (KADBEAM) on Tuesday mobilised relevant community structures, media and Persons with Disabilities to promote girl-child education in Kaduna State.
The Secretary of KADBEAM, Mrs Gloria Bulus, co-chaired by government and Civil Society Organisations, explained at the meeting in Kaduna, that the effort was to strengthen partnership for girl education in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the community structures include Parent Teachers Association (PTA), School-Based Management Committees (SBMCs) and other community members.
Bulus said the mobilisation was supported by UK-funded Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn, to ensure that no girl child was left behind in accessing quality education.
She said that the objective of the meeting was to facilitate a wider partnership, strengthen collaboration among PTAs, SBMCs, media and community members, and government for girl child education.
According to her, the measure will increase advocacy and sensitisation to influence girls to access formal and non-formal education.
She added that “it will also help in advocating for increased response to socio-economic barriers such as poverty, violence, poor infrastructure and unfriendly learning environment for girls.”
The KADBEAM Co-Chair, Civil Society, Mr Tijjani Aliyu, explained that mobilising community members, community strictures, the media and other stakeholders was critical to improving access to quality education for the girl child.
Aliyu said stakeholders from every local government area would identify peculiar challenges affecting girl child education and develop strategies on how to address them to ensure that every girl child went to school.
Mr Abel Adejor, State Team Lead, PERL, explained that the governance programme was prioritising girl child education in its support to Kaduna State efforts to transform the education sector.
Adejor said that PERL was supporting the state to strengthen accountability, transparency, and citizens’ engagement in the governance process, with the current focus on improving girl’s access to quality basic education.
Also, Mrs Esther Jibji, Desk Officer, SBMC, at the Kaduna State Universal Basic Education Board, thanked KADBEAM for working with the board to strengthen the delivery of quality basic education in the state.
Jibji noted the concerns on the state of girl child education in the state, stressing the need for the support of every stakeholder, particularly community members to make progress in girl child enrolment in schools.
She said that the government was implementing several programmes and projects with support from development partners to increase access to girl child education in the state.
The Civil Society Co-Chair, Open Government Partnership, Kaduna State, Mrs Hadiza Umar, thanked KADBEAM for bringing government and civil society to the discussion table, to deliberate on the issues affecting girl child education.
“This will enable us to take action as a team working for the interest of our girls in every community in Kaduna State,” she said.
The President, National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria, Alhaji Haruna Danjuma, promised that the association would work with KADBEAM and other relevant stakeholders to promote girl child education.
Similarly, the SBMC State Chairman, Mr Usman Sani, also said that the SBMCs were on ground to support ongoing efforts to improve access to quality education in the state, particularly the girl child.
Sani said that so far, the SBMCs have contributed N97 million worth of services to the basic education sector in the state.
