1.2m persons need emergency education in Borno, Adamawa, Yobe, says TRCN
AREWA AGENDA – Following constant attacks on schools in the North East and the accompanying decline in foreign investment inflow and untold pressure on the local economy, 1.2 million people require emergency education in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states.
Registrar and Chief executive of Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Prof. Olusegun Ajiboye, who made the submission, yesterday, at the 58th (seventh quadrennial) Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) National Delegates Conference in Ibadan, Oyo State, noted: “The presence of armed forces in and near schools can make it a target of retaliatory attacks, increasing the risk to children and teachers, as well as the likelihood that education will be disrupted.”
This is even as the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and NUT decried the effects of insecurity on the education sector.
Ajiboye, who also disclosed that over 910 learning institutions had been destroyed, added that 2,295 teachers have been killed in the troubled region between 2009 and 2022.
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Speaking further at the event, with the theme, “Terrorism and Attack on Schools: Effects on Education and Nigeria’s Economy,” the TRCN boss observed that the world is grappling “with terrorism, which has dealt a serious blow on every facet of the economy, including education.”
Despite insecurity, Ajiboye promised to champion professionalism and welfare of Nigerian teachers.
According to him, the Federal Government should review its policies to address the “deteriorating security situation because of its effect on education.”
He pleaded: “Government should fully implement the safe schools declaration guidelines endorsed by Nigeria in 2015 and ratified by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.”
Ajiboye, who regretted that over 600,000 Nigerians have lost access to education, stated that the “attack on education creates a ripple effect, setting in motion a range of negative impacts such as illiteracy, early marriages and pregnancies, as well as stigmas associated with sexual violence and children born from rapes, all of which can dramatically affect future of female students.”
NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, lamented: “As it is, there is no sign that the attacks on schools, teachers and students would abate soon.”
On his part, NUT National President, Comrade Audu Titus Amba, urged adequate security in schools and improved welfare for teachers.
In his remarks, Oyo State Chairman of NUT, Comrade Raji Oladimeji Ismail, lauded Governor Seyi Makinde for enabling environment.
Credit: the Guardian
