By EricJames Ochigbo Abuja, Dec. 9, 2020 A Bill for an Act to amend the Compulsory, Free, Universal Basic Education Act on Wednesday, passed second reading in the House of Representatives. The bill which sought to expand the scope of compulsory free basic education in Nigeria to include, Senior Secondary Education level, was sponsored by |
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Published 10 December 2020
THE Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, unwittingly provided an unpleasant insight into the lopsided governance template in Nigeria when he gave a damning verdict on illiteracy and conditions of living among children in the rural areas. It is not only in education provision that the rural areas are short-changed; every other development indicator is grim. At the root of poverty lies the deprivation of people’s access to necessities such as food, healthcare and sanitation, education and assets.
Though accommodating over 64 per cent of the country’s population, according to the National Population Commission, Nigeria’s rural areas lack access to basic amenities, and are characterised by government neglect, indifference and policy-induced poverty. During the closing ceremony of a two-day stakeholders’ consultation towards ministerial commitment for educated, healthy and thriving adolescents and young people in West Africa