According to a report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), approximately one-third of children attending school in Kano state lack basic literacy and numeracy skills. This revelation was made by Michael Obanda, Senior Education Manager for Kano Field Office of UNICEF, during a Stakeholders’ Meeting on the EU-supported Education and Youth Empowerment (EYE) project for Kano State, organized by the Kano State Ministry of Education, UNICEF, and the EU.
The meeting, held at the Covid-19 Conference Hall of the Kano state Ministry of Education, aimed to address challenges in the education sector and enhance educational opportunities for children in Kano.
Obanda highlighted that Kano, along with other states in the North-West region, has a significant number of out-of-school children, and even those enrolled often lack fundamental literacy and numeracy skills. He emphasized the importance of addressing this issue to ensure that children have the necessary foundation for future success.
The EYE project, supported by the EU, seeks to provide children with both qualitative education and skills that will improve their economic prospects. The project aims to enroll and skill 1.5 million children in Sokoto, Kano, and Jigawa states over four years.
UNICEF and its partners plan to extend the EYE project to Qur’anic schools, integrating literacy and numeracy curriculum into their syllabus to reach children who may not have access to formal education.
Kano state Commissioner of Education, Alhaji Haruna Umar Doguwa, expressed the state government’s commitment to the EYE project, which addresses various issues including education, child protection, water supply, and environmental sanitation. He emphasized the importance of enrolling more children in school and improving the quality of education in Kano state, welcoming the support from the EU and UNICEF for these initiatives.
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