Kebbi, UNICEF Inaugurate Women Advocates On Education

Kebbi State Government in partnership with UNICEF has inaugurated an 11 member women committee with the wife of the Governor, Dr. Zainab Atiku Bagudu as the patron. This is in respect to its efforts to promote promote girl child education as well as ensure more enrollment, retention and transition of girls in schools.

The inauguration ceremony of HILWA members (High Level Women Advocates) which took place at Government House in Birnin Kebbi on Monday, was attended by the wife of the Governor, UNICEF education specialist, Mrs Azuka Menketi and officials from ministry of education and SUBEB.

The wife of the Governor in her remark identified education as bedrock of development in any society and basis for building on health, occupation and financial independence however lamented that women in Nigeria face challenges in obtaining education.

“ These challenges are even more extreme in the Northwest with lethal combination of illiteracy and socio cultural practices as huge factors, 60 million girls are out of school worldwide.”

She urged the HILWA members to collectively play vital role in promoting girl child education while also calling on the wives of the emirs and district heads to support the programme.

However, the UNICEF education specialist  Mrs. Azuka Mankiti pledged the commitment of UNICEF for the success of the programme in Kebbi which according to her was being implemented also in Sokoto, Zamfara, Bauchi, Niger, and Katsina .

“We needed high level women in these states where we are implementing girl child education to help us lobby for girls education and also to serve as a pressure group to conduct high level advocacy on issues of girl child education,’’ she said.