Senate Urges National Summit on Out-of-School Children

Following briefings with President Bola Tinubu, the Senate has called for a national summit to address the out-of-school children issue.

This resolution was adopted during plenary following the submission of the Committee on Education (Basic & Secondary) report on the critical need to address the issue of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

Senator Usman Lawal Adamu, who represents Kaduna Central, chaired the committee and revealed that over 2 million out-of-school children have been registered in the previous year thanks to the combined efforts of the ministry’s out-of-school children education agencies.

The threat of out-of-school children was deemed a time bomb in a heated debate involving more than 20 lawmakers, who demanded remedies that went beyond the scope of the federal government.

Some lawmakers, like Senator Ahmed Lawan, suggested that a sizable portion of the 2025 budget be set aside specifically to address the out-of-school issue, while others urged a proper handshake between the national and sub-nationals, especially regarding the issue of access to the UBEC funds.

Senator Godswill Akpabio, the Senate President, claims that out-of-children have turned into possible bandits, making the need to stop the situation even more urgent.

The resolution calling for a national summit was unanimously approved by the Senate.