By SADIQ ABUBAKAR, Maiduguri –
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says no fewer than 1.6 million children are out of school in North East Nigeria.
“We look at the vast and unique education needs of children affected by conflict with at least 1.6 million children are out of school in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States”.
“Among those in school, 72% cannot read a simple text after grade 6. Without acquiring appropriate foundational and transferable skills, children fail to thrive in school and in life”, says UNICEF Chief of Field Office, North East, Nigeria, Phuong T . Nguyen.
Ms. Nguyen, who stated this in her welcome address on Wednesday, said UNICEF remains committed to leaving no child behind as its seek to accelerate education delivery in Nigeria.
According to her, the seminar will convene practitioners and experts , government officials and civil society to discuss how best Nigeria can foster Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) with a particular focus on Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL), Kanuri, Arithmetic and Reading Intervention (KARI), Reading and Numeracy Activity (RANA) and the Accelerated Basic Education Programme (ABEP).
She added that the government, UNICEF, donor agencies and other development partners are already committed to increase awareness on fundamental learning and excited to share innovative methods learned from the implementation of these programmes in Nigeria.
Nguyen noted that UNICEF in collaboration with the state governments of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe have convened a knowledge sharing seminar on scaling Fundamental Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) in North East Nigeria.
The seminar is aimed of promoting awareness of FLN models and lessons from the implementation of fundamental learning programmes in north East Nigeria with special consideration of the ongoing humanitarian development nexus in the region.
Nguyen maintained that the major objectives of the seminar include presentation of the current status of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in North East Nigeria and results of the evaluation/assessment of TaRL, KARI and ABEP.
Others include sharing of experiences on what works on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy and discussing how to scale up evidence-based and informed interventions on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy within the unique humanitarian and development contexts of the North East Nigeria.
She said: “addressing the learning crises in North-East, and in Nigeria as a whole, requires us to examine the evidence of what works, explore partnerships with the State, NGOs, development partners and communities.
“This seminar provides us with a platform to share evidence, experiences and to renew our commitment to improving learning outcomes of schoolgirls and boys”, she said.
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Great keep it up.