CSACEFA: championing girl-child education in Nigeria

Stakeholders at the national meeting of the Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All (CSACEFA), Nigeria’s biggest coalition of education-focused NGOs, sued for implementation and enforcement of existing laws enacted to protect and encourage girls’ education. ADAM ALQALI, reports

Civil society organisations under the auspices of the Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All (CSACEFA), Nigeria’s biggest coalition of education-focused NGOs, have decried the government’s low level of commitment towards implementation and enforcement of existing laws enacted to protect and encourage girls’ education and therefore called for the enforcement of existing laws enacted to protect and encourage girls’ education including the Child Right Act
The Child Right Act, the group says will hold government and parents accountable on the issues of girls’ education.
The CSOs made this call during CSACEFA’s one-day national stakeholders’ meeting held recently In Kano. The main objectives of the meeting were to key into the expansion of the basic education mandate (from 9 to 12 years) as contained in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as promote the domestication of the Child Right Act in the states of the federation.

The meeting was part of a national and state level consciousness and awareness raising initiative by CSACEFA on the need for girls’ progress as a means for achieving sustainable development.
Specifically, the meeting aimed to sensitize and create awareness among stakeholders (Government agencies, CSOs, Media, Students and
Community Based Organizations (PTAs, SBMCs etc) on the status and importance of girl-child education.
A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting observed that budgetary allocation and releases for girls education programmes were low with high level of dependence on the contribution of donor agencies, adding that despite the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by Nigeria, “very little work has been put in place towards the implementation of SDGs including goal number 4 which directly relates to education.”

Among others, it recommended that government and relevant stakeholders intensified efforts for the domestication of Nigeria’s Child Right Act and implementation of other policies that will promote girls’ education as well as “ensure timely release of approved budget for education which will in turn improve girls’ education programmes across the country and reduce over dependence on donor agencies for sustainable development.”
The meeting identified the prevalence of security challenges in public schools including vandalisation of school infrastructure by miscreants as one of the issues posing great challenge to girls attendance, retention and completion in school and decried the inadequacy of female teachers in girls’ schools especially in rural areas and low level of qualification and capacity on the part of the female teachers as another serious challenge bedeviling girls’ education.

The coalition commended the Kano Emirate Council for the introduction of Second Chance Education programme but noted its limited coverage to few LGAs; the Sokoto State Government was commended for the setting up of a Women Education Agency to cater for the needs of women and girls issues particularly education matters.
Moreover, the communiqué observed that parents and guardians were discouraging girls from studying Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) oriented courses in tertiary institutions because they were stereotyped as ‘courses for boys’ and urged parents to encourage girls to study STEM-oriented courses which will improve social inclusion and reduce discrimination.
The meeting concluded with the adoption of “Kano Declaration 2016” a commitment by stakeholders to give their time and resources towards promotion of girls’ education in Nigeria.
As at 2012, over 33 million children in sub-Saharan Africa did not have access to education, over half of which were girls, says the UN’s 2014 Millennium Development Goals Report. Over 5 million out of the 33 million girls were in Nigeria, which makes it the country with the highest number of out-of-school girls in the whole of Africa.

Goal 4 of the newly adopted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is seeking to ensure all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education by 2030, the realization of which requires drastic and sustained action.
The CSACEFA national stakeholders’ meeting brought together stakeholders from 5 States namely: Bauchi, Kaduna, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto States. In attendance at the meeting are representatives of civil society organizations, development partners, relevant government Ministries, Departments and Agencies, professional associations, female students, parents, media organisations, members of various School Based Management Committees (SBMCs) as well as representatives of Parent Teachers Associations (PTAs).