COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT A ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION ORGANIZED BY AHIP/CHRISTIAN AID ON RETENTION AND COMPLETION OF GIRL CHILD EDUCATION IN KANO STATE ON 28TH SEPTEMBER 2023 AT PLOT 2022, YAUTAI LINK, HOTORO GRA, ADJACENT TO AL AMIN HOSPITAL, KANO

COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT A ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION ORGANIZED BY AHIP/CHRISTIAN AID ON RETENTION AND COMPLETION OF GIRL CHILD EDUCATION IN KANO STATE ON 28TH SEPTEMBER 2023 AT PLOT 2022, YAUTAI LINK, HOTORO GRA, ADJACENT TO AL AMIN HOSPITAL, KANO

In the realm of adolescent health and information, we convene under the banner of the Adolescent Health and Information Project (AHIP). This auspicious gathering, held on the 28th day of September in the year 2023, transpired at Plot 2022, Yautai Link, Hotoro GRA, adjacent to Al Amin Hospital, situated gracefully off Maiduguri Road. Our punctual commencement time was 10:00 AM.

AHIP, an entity dedicated to the welfare of youth, stands as a non-governmental, non-partisan, and non-profit organization singularly committed to elevating the health and economic stature of women and young individuals. AHIP’s noble endeavor revolves around the provision of information, training, and enlightenment, with a pronounced emphasis on the general well-being of our youth.

In recognition of the growing predicament of female youth reduction from the educational sphere within Kano State, AHIP has initiated a significant project entitled “Inclusive Action for Adolescent Girls Education in Kano State.” This commendable initiative, propelled by the benevolent support of Christian Aid, aspires to improve the retention and result rates among adolescent girls in Kano State. Central to this pursuit is the deployment of the Gender Empowerment and Organizing Resource (GEADOR) mechanism, which acts as an instrumental channel for empowering marginalized cohorts in the decision-making processes that intimately influence their lives. Through GEADOR, we endeavor to infuse the educational landscape with equity, thereby granting unrestricted access to education and enhanced prospects for a life enriched in well-being.

Our meeting transpired in the form of a round table discussion, expertly convened by AHIP with support from Christian Aid. We were graced by the presence of distinguished participants who contributed their insights during the introduction, inclusive of a cordial welcome address by the venerable Director of AHIP, Hajia Mairo Bello Garko.

Goodwill messages emanated from esteemed representatives, including but not limited to the Kano State Ministry of Education, the Kano State Secondary Schools Management Board/State Universal Basic Education Board, the Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All, and the Girls Education Partnership.

The pivotal objectives of our round table discourse centered upon the contemporary challenges impeding the retention and ultimate completion of education by girls. These objectives were twofold:

• To validate and elucidate the complex challenges and impediments that obstruct the steadfast pursuit of education by our female youth.
• To skillfully conceptualize and proffer innovative strategies and initiatives aimed at fostering the enduring retention and successful peak of the educational journey embarked upon by adolescent girls. This holistic endeavor seeks to engender collaboration and partnerships among stakeholders, wherein government representatives, civil society organizations, educators, parents, and community leaders join in harmonious synergy to forge a collective route directed at the enhancement of girl child retention and completion rates.

Subsequently, the discourse unfolded with Hajia Mairo Bello Garko, Director of AHIP, expounding upon the contemporary educational landscape. It was illuminated that, despite the laudable enactment of a policy decreeing free and compulsory Basic and Secondary Education, enrollment figures have surged. Yet, a perplexing problem persists, for even in the wake of rising enrollments, the specters of retention, transition, and completion remain critical. In Kano, a striking augmentation in girl child enrollment transpired since 2017, with 1,978,884 girls; however, by 2020, only 273,471 transitioned to junior secondary schools, with a mere 168,239 progressing to senior secondary schools, as per the Kano State Annual School Census. This vexing reduction is intensified by the restrictions of qualifying examinations, which, for children attaining nine credits, determine sponsorship for NECO or SSCE/WAEC examinations.

Notably, Kano State persists as the citadel of the highest number of out-of-school children, nearly 1.5 million by the metrics of UNICEF, an undeniable cause for grave concern. Unlettered youth stand as vulnerable outsiders, repeatedly exposed to systemic discrimination based on age, social status, education, and health. The plight of girls and young women is further compounded by the dual fluctuations of gender discrimination, both within the domicile and the broader community range. These vulnerabilities are magnified within rural divisions, where the universal threats of poverty, established culture, traditions, infrastructural dearth, and service deserts hold influence. Furthermore, the female adolescent, aged between 13 and 16, bears a difficult mantle, being up to sixfold more prone to humiliations and maltreatment than her male counterpart of commensurate age.

Indeed, an collection of tribulations meets to menace the educational landscape within Kano State, encompassing the absence of requisite facilities and qualified educators, the dire need for greater accessibility, the problem of mass poverty among the populace, the lamentable deficit of human resources to oversee educational institutions, the harmful menace of ignorance, the deceptive pervasion of examination malpractice, and the lamentable inappropriateness of an education system grieving of productivity.

In response to these exigencies, we proffer the following recommendations:

1. We advocate for an augmented allocation of fiscal resources to the education sub-sector of Kano State, sustained by a steadfast commitment to transparency and judicious fiscal stewardship.
2. It is incumbent upon us to inculcate within the populace an unwavering awareness of the intrinsic value of education, compelling them to embrace it wholeheartedly.
3. To mitigate the negative effects of poverty upon education in Kano State, we passionately beseech the State Government to institutionalize social protection programs.
4. We urge for the amplification of the capacities of pertinent educational agencies in Kano State, including the State Ministry of Education and SUBEB.
5. We endorse a collaborative overture with donor agencies, thereby facilitating the execution of pivotal programs.
6. It is our sincere belief that a moral revival is requisite, a clarion call to be heeded by the State Government with unflagging commitment. This would encompass the resolute pursuit of moral instruction within our schools.
7. We vehemently emphasize the necessity of recruiting educators of consummate quality, underpinned by a thorough program of retraining.
8. We strongly support the establishment of additional schools in Kano State, specifically tailored to provide entrepreneurship and vocational education.
9. To advance the adoption of legal frameworks, we propose the formation of a coalition, aiming to harness the recommendations and insights presented by the Coalition for Girl Child Education in their advocacy efforts.
10. It is imperative that we consistently promote and stimulate local communities to assume responsibility and actively engage in the governance and sustenance of educational institutions.
11. We have collectively committed to push for diligent enforcement of prevailing education legislation, the interpretation of the legislations bordering on education so that it can form a precedence and template for operation; with special emphasis on upholding the unprejudiced right of females to receive education, free from any discriminatory practices.
12. We advocate for the establishment of community schools by the communities, philanthropists, and private school sectors as a corporate social responsibility. 
13. Finally, we implore for the activation and enshrinement of laws recognizing education as an irrevocable, and inalienable right, ensuring that no citizen within Kano State is deprived thereof.

In closing, we deem it pertinent to applaud the framework of PERL, AGILE and PLANE as venerable acronyms exemplary of best practices. Furthermore, we extend our collective gratitude for the draft policies poised for approval and imminent implementation, covering the domains of Girl Education, Teacher Development, and Gender. A collaborative spirit and partnership found ample expression in the fruitful exchange of questions and answers, closing in open discourse. An action plan shall be diligently devised, guiding our next steps, while key resolutions and policy recommendations shall be disseminated through the media.

In culmination, the privilege of penning these words falls to AHIP, who extend their gratitude, and a closing prayer seals our proceedings.

Yours in the pursuit of knowledge,

Dr. Zubaida Nagee Dr. Mariya Aliyu Waziri Barr. Priscilla Kwatwa

Baobab GEP Legal Expert

Hajia Fatima Aliyu Hajia Sa’adatu Hashim Musa Umar Farouk

PLANE FOMWAN Gama First 

Mohammed Mahdi Abdullahi

CSACEFA