Musa Na Allah, Sokoto
The District Head of Wurno, Kabiru Alhassan Chigari (Sarkin Sudan) has pledged to give all necessary support to ensure the success of the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) Project in Wurno local government and Sokoto state.
He made the remarks on Saturday at his Palace when he received the Sokoto State AGILE project implementation team led by the Project Coordinator, Dr Mansur Isah Buhari who were on the project awareness campaign.
The Sarkin Sudan said poverty has eaten deep into the society to the extent that parents could not take care of their children, not to talk of sponsoring them to schools, especially girls.
“Some poverty-stricken parents who could not afford to send their children especially girls to schools engage them in hawking which has a negative consequence on their lives and that high-level poverty affected the girls.”
He further reiterated the commitment of his subjects to the advancement of girl’s education in his domain and Sokoto state given its importance to societal development.
The Monarch described girls’ education as key to any responsible government, hence the need for his subjects to embrace it and remain committed to its advancement in the area.
AGILE project awareness team highlighted the achievements of the state in girls’ education and underscored the critical role of traditional and religious leaders in promoting school enrollment, retention, and completion, particularly among girls.
The Project Coordinator of Sokoto State AGILE Project, Dr Mansur Isah Buhari said that traditional and religious leaders have been assisting the State in promoting school enrollment, retention, and completion, particularly among Girls.
He lamented the education backwardness in the northwest region, particularly among girls, where most of them engage in hawking and other trades to put food on the tables in their families which makes them vulnerable to unforeseen circumstances.
“We are here on a serious business, to discuss the issue of education of our daughters, it is a meeting AGILE project.”
“Let me stress here that the traditional institutions have a very significant role to play in the scheme of things and I am optimistic with the support of traditional rulers, the AGILE Project will be of utmost success in Sokoto State.
“Giving the Girlchild education is the best thing to do because she will use it to better the society as she will take care of herself, her family, and community irrespective of traditional, religious or cultural background,” he added
“Sokoto state government has made a tremendous effort on improving education of the adolescent Girls.
“I commend Governor Ahmed Aliyu for his due diligence and support in that direction.”
Dr Buhari further explained that the overall objective of the AGILE project is to create awareness of the significance of girls’ education in Sokoto state and the northwest subregion already ravaged by insurgency and other socioeconomic challenges.
“Very soon the project will commence massive rehabilitation of schools and construction of new ones, equipped with needed facilities to accommodate our adolescent girls, many of them stay away from schools due to a lack of basic amenities such as toilet facilities.
“We will make available incentives to them through the School-Based Management Committee (SBMCs) for their parents to start petty trading to be able to keep them going to school daily
“The education of the girl-child who form a larger percentage of the most vulnerable segment of the society is vital in the socio-economic development of any Community and the state.
“Today, we are here to address one of the pressing issues of ensuring that every girl child is given access to quality education.
This visit is a call to action and a reminder for us to work together and push away all barriers and empower our young girls to achieve their potential in life.
“This August meeting showcases our commitments to creating a society where every adolescent girl will have the opportunity to learn, grow, and thrive.
“Let us work together to bring a change in the lives of our adolescent girls.
“We shall ensure that every girl child has access to quality education and all opportunities that come with it.”
The meeting at the palace brought together key stakeholders in the area, including religious and traditional leaders, to discuss actionable strategies for improving girls’ education in Wurno local government.
