Ondo govt, Assembly vows zero tolerance for out-of-school children

With 5.9 percent of out-of-school children in Ondo State, the state government and the State House of Assembly have vowed to ensure that the menace is exterminated.

According to the Commissioner for Education, Science, and Technology in the State, Laolu Akindolire, with the low data, the state cannot afford not to ensure that every child is enrolled in primary and secondary education.

Speaking after a two-day stakeholders’ meeting organised by the United Nations Children’s Education Fund’s (UNICEF) collaboration with the Oyo State Government to tackle the issue of out-of-school children in Southwest states, Akindolire disclosed that the ministry will partner with the House of Assembly in order to achieve legislation that would give zero tolerance to the issue.

He said: “We hope to set up the necessary machines to reduce the number of out-of-school children in Ondo State. Although the percentage of out-of-school children in Ondo State is not that high, we can still do a lot to reduce it to the barest minimum, zero if possible.

“Presently, the state government is ready to commence a very comprehensive renovation of schools so that there will be enough classrooms and a conducive environment to accommodate students.

“Secondly, we are presently recruiting one thousand teachers in the primary schools and also one thousand teachers in the secondary schools, so that we have enough teachers. And it is going to be on an annual basis henceforth so that we will be able to have enough teachers to teach our students.”

On his part, the Majority Leader of the State House of Assembly, Oluwole Ogunmolasuyi, who is also the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriation, stressed that the legislature was fully ready to combat the out-of-school menace.

Ogunmolasuyi, who was in the company of Chairman House Committee on Education, Kolawole Ologede, said the stakeholders meeting was an eye-opener that the government needed to do more to tackle the menace.

“You can see that for us to leave Ondo State to come to Oyo State, you can understand that the future of our young ones is very important to us. And it is important for everyone of us to make sure that we do the needful to reduce the number of out-of-school children.

“I know that we cannot eradicate this overnight, but it is a gradual process, and I know that whatever we are able to put in place today or whatever we are able to learn.

“We have to make sure that we continue to do that; it has to be a continuous exercise until we achieve our aim.”

Also speaking at the event, Mr. Muhammad Okorie, Officer-in-Charge, UNICEF, Lagos Field Office, said the government and stakeholders in the education sector must develop workable models to protect children’s right to quality education, emphasising that the menace of out-of-school children must be tackled in the country.