BY ANKELI EMMANUEL, Sokoto –
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Sokoto State Government on Tuesday signed the Transformative Actions partnership on Almajiri and out-of-school adolescent girls in the state.
Signing the partnership documents in UNICEF office, Sokoto State Permanent Secretary for Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Barrister Aisha Dantsoho admitted that working with UNICEF has not only boost their capacities in care for children but also making parents to take responsibility of their children as well.
The partnership which is also with Sokoto State Arabic and Islamic Board, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, and that of Zakat and Waqf Endowment Commission is geared towards the, “Implementation of Transformative Actions to Address The Situation of Almajiri Children Outside of Family Care and Out of School Adolescent Girls in Sokoto”.
Giving her view on the project, Barrister Aisha Dantsoho, said for the communities to have accepted that they have out-of-school children alone shows that they are committed to the programme.
While admitting that poverty is largely responsible for the out-of-school adolescent girls in the State, Barrister Aisha stressed that the transformative actions will surely change the narrative for good.
She also noted that the Women and Children Affairs Ministry will be providing services ranging from re-integration or integration into formal schools for those within the age of schools to other vocational skills based on the ages of the girls..
“”We have about 132000 of these out-of-school adolescent girls as captured by our data, and we will be working with the basic education and SUBEB to integrate those girls into schools. And for those that are beyond school age, we will provide vocational skills, which include life skills, livelihood and other skills programmes for them”. Aisha enthused.
Continuing, the Permanent Secretary said, the Transformative Actions for the out-of-school adolescent girls is starting with eight (8) local governments areas of Binji, Tangaza, Sokoto North, Sokoto South, Kware, Illela, Bodinga and Denge Shuni, as pilot but will be scaled up based on the output as they are all community based.
“The arrangement is from the state level to the local government, to the community level and to the ward level. That is how the structure is. So our signing of this partnership today is to enable us start working on this component of the out-of-school adolescent girls. They are about 132,000. But we are starting with about 5,000 to see how far we will go for the first year and then scale up by the next year if God permits us to do so”. She assured.
After signing the Transformative Actions alongside Danjuma Almustapha who deputized for the Chief of Field Office, UNICEF, Sokoto, the Executive Secretary, Arabic and Islamic Board, Dr Umar Altine Dandinmahe, said they are committed to the sustainability of all impactful programmes initiated by donor agencies in the State.
It will be recalled that stakeholders from the Sokoto State Arabic and Islamic Education Board, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, and that of Zakat and Waqf Endowment Commission in collaboration with United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), traditional and religious leaders as well as those from the academics and civil society organisations had earlier endorsed and validated a two year work plan designed for Almajiri and out of school adolescent girls in Sokoto state.
Clarifying the 2 year work plan then, Mr Pius Uwamanua, UNICEF Sokoto Field Office Child Protection Specialists, the validation meeting told stakeholders that they are critical in ensuring viability and acceptability of the programme.
While noting that they have 230,535 verified and documented Almajiri and out of school girls in Sokoto state, Mr Pius said the two year work plan is segmented into 5 separate pillars for effective service delivery and monitoring.
The breakdown of the pillars according to Mr Pius include, Review and Strengthen Appropriate Legal Standards, Including Education Reforms, Support Inclusive and Equitable Quality Learning for all of the Out of School Children like Almajiri and other at risk children.
The third and fourth pillars include, Strengthen Child Protection and Child Welfare System, Strengthen Social Protection System at Household and Community Levels and the fifth covers Support Skills Acquisition, Life Skills (Including Formal Education) Welfare Readiness and Empowerment of Adolescent and Young People.
DISCLAIMER
The OPINION / COLUMN is authored by independent contributors to the National Accord Newspaper. While contributors adhere to our editorial guidelines, they are not employed by the National Accord Newspaper. The perspectives and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent the views of the National Accord Newspaper or its staff.