14m children out of school in Nigeria —Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said on Saturday over 14 million children were out of school in Nigeria.

He stated this at the virtual 2020 Fellowship Graduation Ceremony of the second cohort of “Teach for Nigeria Fellows” held in Lagos.

“Teach For Nigeria,” a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), graduated 161 fellows who had impacted approximately 9,660 students in 80 schools across Lagos, Ogun, and Kaduna states.

The ex-president said: “They are deprived of opportunities that will allow them to develop their abilities and become useful to themselves and their communities.

“It is evident that at this point, to transform our education system in a sustainable way, Nigerian youths must take up leadership positions.”

He urged the youth to champion different innovative solutions at every level of the society and across different sectors.

According to him, the leaders had dedicated their time, energy and resources to inspire love for learning, improved educational outcomes, and enhanced life opportunities for children in the classrooms.

READ ALSO: 17m Nigerian children age 15 to 17 out of school, UNICEF says

Obasanjo added: “It is inspiring to see the work that ‘Teach For Nigeria’ is doing to equip promising future leaders with the skills and experience to drive the change that we need.

“As a result of your commitment, your pupils have succeeded at various academic and non-academic competitions.

“I recently learnt about pupils of ‘Teach For Nigeria Fellows’ who came second in the National Lafarge Competition and other scholarship opportunities.

“They also initiated actions by working with stakeholders such as parents, community members, heads of schools, and other teachers.”

He, however, advised the fellows to continue to leverage their acquired skills and experiences to advocate for educational excellence in the country.

The former president urged them to be ambassadors for change, driving the movement for freedom and justice in Nigeria.

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