Alarmed by the growing number of children staying out of school in Niger State, the Kontagora Emirate has unveiled a five-year blueprint to reverse the trend and improve access to education.
The initiative, Mu Koma Makaranta, is targeting children who have been left outside the formal education system.
The blueprint covers the period 2026 to 2031 and was developed after consultations involving traditional rulers, government officials, education stakeholders, parents, youths, community leaders and development partners.
The programme is anchored on the theme, “Bringing Children Back, Helping Them Learn, Keeping Them in School, and Building Communities that Value Education.”
The initiative said the education crisis in the emirate could no longer be left to government and schools alone.
It called for the active involvement of traditional institutions, families, communities, religious leaders, teachers and development partners.
According to the communique signed by Isah Adamu Ibrahim of Badamasi Babangida University and Dr Shaima’u Aliyu Yunusa of the Federal University of Education, Kontagora, the blueprint will provide a structured framework for identifying and supporting vulnerable children.
The programme will identify out-of-school children, engage their families, mobilise communities, assess their learning needs and facilitate their return to school.
It will also monitor the children continuously to reduce the risk of dropping out again.
To drive the programme at the grassroots, the emirate plans to establish Community Education Action Teams.
The teams will comprise teachers, parents, traditional and religious leaders, youths, school-based management committees and community organisations.
The initiative has also proposed a flexible curriculum for out-of-school children aged six to 14 years.
The curriculum will focus on literacy, numeracy, health, life skills, digital literacy and practical skills.
The stakeholders further resolved to improve access to learning materials, strengthen teacher support and school leadership, while ensuring regular monitoring of schools.
The emirate also warned against social practices that keep children out of school.
It specifically identified early marriage, social barriers and parental neglect of educational responsibilities as issues requiring urgent community action.
Girl-child education, it said, would receive special attention to close gaps in access to learning.
The blueprint will also promote technical, vocational, science, technology and skills-based education to prepare young people for employment and other opportunities.
The initiative estimates that implementing the programme will require ₦543.375 million annually, equivalent to about US$402,500.
The proposed expenditure will cover training, supervision, teaching and learning materials, per-child and per-centre costs and other implementation expenses.
The stakeholders pledged to work together to get children back into classrooms, improve learning outcomes and make education a shared responsibility across the Kontagora Emirate.