Out-of-school children Archives - Voice of Liberty NG

“Poverty, out-of-school children driving insecurity in the North” — NSGF

June 16, 2026June 16, 2026 Aminu Imam

Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF) and governor of Gombe State, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, has identified widespread poverty, youth unemployment and the growing number of out-of-school children as major factors fuelling insecurity across northern Nigeria. Speaking yesterday at the meeting of the Northern Traditional Rulers Council held in Dutse, Jigawa State, Governor Yahaya said the region’s security challenges are deeply rooted in decades of underdevelopment and social deprivation. According to him, about 86 million people in Northern Nigeria, representing 65 per cent of the region’s population, are living…

Out-of-school children: ‘Jigawa, Kano, Katsina top list’ – UNICEF

May 4, 2026May 4, 2026 Aminu Imam

Jigawa, Kano and Katsina in Nigeria’s North-West region have been identified as states with the highest number of out-of-school children crisis, as UNICEF stressed that urgent investment in early childhood education remained critical to turning the tide. According to UNICEF, Nigeria currently accounts for about 18.3 million out-of-school children, the highest number globally. An education consultant with UNICEF Kano Field Office, A’isha Abdullahi, disclosed this at a 2-day dialogue for journalists from Jigawa, Kano and Katsina states, while presenting a paper on foundation learning and skills development, noting that the…

UNICEF enrols 15,000 Katsina out-of-school children into school

November 21, 2025November 21, 2025 Aminu Imam

The United Nations Children’s Fund, (UNICEF), has said its efforts over the last three decades have led to about 15,000 out-of-school children being absorbed into the formal school system across Katsina State. UNICEF also said that a total of 112 Tsangaya, or Islamic, schools were integrated into the formal, or Western, education system across the state during the same period. The Chief of the UNICEF Field Office in Kano, Rahama Farah, stated this in Kano State yesterday, during a zonal commemoration of World Children’s Day and the unveiling of the…

FG to return 500,000 out-of-school children to learning centres

August 20, 2025August 20, 2025 Aminu Imam

The Federal Government has begun a programme to reintegrate more than 500,000 out-of-school children into learning centres across the country, in the first phase of a national literacy initiative. The National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-Formal Education, (NMEC), announced the rollout yesterday, at a two-day training for enumerators in Abuja. Acting Executive Secretary of NMEC, Dr. John Onimisi, said the exercise would capture data on young people aged 15 and above, who either dropped out or never completed formal schooling. He explained that the scheme would combine literacy…

‘There’re over 10m out-of-school children in Nigeria’ – UNICEF

January 25, 2025January 25, 2025 Aminu Imam

The United Nations Children Fund, (UNICEF), has said Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (2021) showed that there are currently about 10.2 million primary school children who are out of school in Nigeria. The Chief, UNICEF Field Office, Kano State, Rahama Farah, who stated this yesterday in Kano during a briefing to mark the 2025 edition of the ‘International Day of Education’, said: “There are currently about 10.2 million children at the primary level who are out-of-school in Nigeria; 16% of them are from Kano, Jigawa and Katsina states. Close to one…

�Almajirai, out-of-school children core problem for Northern leaders� – Sultan

October 29, 2024October 29, 2024 Aminu Imam

Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Muhammad Sa�ad Abubakar II, has stated that the issue of almajirai and out-of-school children remains a serious challenge leaders in Northern Nigeria must tackle. The Sultan, who made these comments while addressing the Northern Governors Forum (NGF) during a meeting held in Kaduna yesterday, noted that there are millions of such children roaming around towns, cities, and villages across the region. He urged the governors to include this issue in their discussions, emphasising the need to…

Almajiri Commission to enrol 10,000 out-of-school children before September

July 20, 2024July 20, 2024 Aminu Imam

The National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education, (NCAOOSCE), in partnership with commissioners of education of some northern States, has pledged to visit the six area councils in the nation�s capital, to identify and enroll not less than 10,000 out-of-school children before September. The pledge was made yesterday, during the inauguration of the out-of-school children enrollment champions at the Commission�s headquarters in Abuja. The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Mohammed Idris, acknowledged the leadership and unwavering support of President Bola Tinubu, who has been instrumental in advancing efforts to…

FG unveils project to get 20m kids back in school

July 7, 2024July 7, 2024 Aminu Imam

Worried by the increasing rate of out-of-school children in the country, President Bola Tinubu has approved the commencement of the DOTS project to overhaul the education sector, increase enrolment and ensure the academic security of the nation�s children. DOTS is an acronym representing: ‘Data Repository, Out-of-School Children�s Education, Teacher Training and Development, and Skill Development and Acquisition‘. Minister of State for Education, Dr. Yusuf Tanko Sununu, made the disclosure on Friday in Shabu, a suburb of Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, while simultaneously performing the ground-breaking foundation-laying ceremony of the…

�Tinubu to return 10.5m out-of-school children to school� – Minister

September 13, 2023 Aminu Imam

�Says FG to grant financial autonomy to universities The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, has hinted that President Bola Tinubu was determined to reduce the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria to the barest minimum by increasing funding for the education sector by 25%. The Minister, made this revelation as he declared open the 2021 and 2022 Nigeria Annual Education Conference (NAEC), with the theme: �Implementation of Education 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Nigeria�, which held in Abuja on Monday. Prof. Mamman also revealed that his administration as…

�Tackle out-of-school children�, Arewa Group tells Tinubu

July 2, 2023July 2, 2023 Aminu Imam

Arewa Development Support Initiative (ADSI), a non-governmental organisation, has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to address the issues of girl-child and out-of-school children education, particularly in the country�s north. In a statement to mark Eid-el Kabir, the group�s president, Khuraira Musa, also urged the federal government to find a long-term solution to the country�s farmers/herders crisis. ADSI emphasised the importance of the federal government convening farmers and herders to discuss the next steps. According to the NGO, �It is heartbreaking to see towns and villages deserted because of avoidable crises…