Federal Ministry of Education weekend launched the National Policy on Gender in education (NPGE) with a view to reduce disparity in access, retention and completion at all levels of education in Nigeria.
The ministry said the reversed policy would be used at all levels, from early childhood, education and tertiary level.
But, officials of the Delta state Ministries of Education were absent at the national launch and dissemination of NPGE which was held in Asaba, the state capital.
Representatives from South-west states of Ekiti, Osun, Oyo and Ondo, as well as Edo and Rivers in the South-south were among the critical stakeholders at the ceremony.
But no stakeholder from Delta state where the event held was present.
Organiser of the launch, the Federal Ministry of Education with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said that information was passed across the four Ministries of Education in the state.
Director of Senior Secondary Education at the Federal Ministry of Education, Hajia Binta Abdulkadir, while addressing the participants said the NPGE is the reviewed National Policy on Gender in Basic Education (NPGBE) which was developed and printed in 2006.
She said the 2006 policy document was long overdue for review as a result of emerging issues and identified gaps in implementation.
The director who was represented by the deputy director (Gender) at the ministry, Mrs. Felicia Ajanigo Abuka, Abdulkadir, said the revised policy would now be used at all levels – from Early Childhood Care Development and Education (ECCDE) to tertiary level.
She charged participants to be committed to the implementation of the policy document in their respective states in order to reduce the disparities in access, retention and completion at all levels of education.
UNICEF Education Specialist, Mrs. Azuka Menkili, told participants that her organisation was delighted to work to the Nigerian government and other partners in bringing the policy to fruition.
She said the launch of the document was “a demonstration of the transformative political will and strategic investment being made in girls’ education in Nigeria.
“And we know what works to increase girl’s participation in education – from cash transfer programmes, to compacts with men and with communities, to multiple, flexible, and certified learning pathways, to investing in skills development for girls.
“Our challenge going forward is not to figure out what to do to achieve gender equality, but how to deliver these proven strategies through sustainable delivery mechanisms with speed, scale and quality.
