By Patricia Amogu

Retention

In an effort to promote the retention of children in school, Broadoaks British School (BBS), Abuja, says it will offer scholarships to selected students for its September 2023 admission.

The Head Teacher of the school, Mr Franklin Adjetey, disclosed this in Abuja at a news conference organised to invite members of the public to the school’s open day.

Adjetey said the scholarship offers would enable the Nigerian child to access world-class education and serve as support to those families in need of it the most.

“Currently, in Nigeria, there are 20 million children out of school.

“This is millions of potential doctors, lawyers, accountants, business gurus, technology experts, and so much more that have their potentialities untapped.

“We believe that every child needs a safe and secure environment where they can access high-quality education.

“We understand that 20 million children out of education are a very big problem and one which will take more than one person to solve.

“We seek to be a contributor to the solution as we aim to educate one million children for free in Nigeria.

“One way that Broadoaks British school seeks to do this is through our scholarships,’’ Adjetey said.

The head teacher noted that BBS is a school where the educational, social, and emotional development of the child is key.

He described the school as an institution “where solid foundations are set for life; where children are encouraged to become all-round achievers; and where all individuals have a high expectation of themselves.’’

According to him, BBS offers the opportunity for students to show respect for themselves and others, and where children can pick up life skills that enable them to thrive in the 21st century.

BBS was founded on Sept. 13, 2016, out of a passion to deliver a five-star standard of education in Abuja with a strong focus on academic excellence and a holistic approach to learning.

The school was established with a vision to provide a globally sound educational experience that inspires all children to achieve their potential in an increasingly innovative world. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

(Edited by Emmanuel Yashim

By Ruth Oketunde

The British charity, IA-Foundation, has urged Nigeria’s President-elect Sen. Bola Tinubu to take urgent steps to tackle Nigeria’s out-of-school crisis, to restore hope to some 20.2 million out-of-school kids in the country.

The founder and Chief Executive Officer of IA-Foundation, Mrs Ibironke Adeagbo, made the appeal in a letter to the president-elect, a copy obtained by a correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.

Adeagbo’s letter comes ahead of a fund-raising event, slated for Kent in England on March 18, to bring global attention to the out-of-school problem in Nigeria.

The event is billed to take place at Bishop Justus CE School in Bromley, Kent, east of England.

It is expected to attract dignitaries, including Nigeria’s top UK envoy, Amb. Sarafa Ishola and a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

IA-Foundation, which is active in Nigeria is a British-registered charity, working assiduously since the past four years to tackle the out-of-school crisis in Africa’s most populous nation.

Adeagbo advised the in-coming administration to hit the ground running in tackling basic problems that had made millions of Nigerian children to stay out of school.

She said that government should increase budgetary allocation to the education sector, improve infrastructure and train teachers to turnaround basic education in the country.

According to her, although basic education is believed to be free in Nigeria, the entry barriers of registration fees and other payments required before enrollment have made many indigent families to keep their children at home.

“In 2022, we identified over 400 children in Bwari community in Abuja, whose parents could not afford to pay entrance fees of N7, 000 to N8, 000, to be enrolled into government primary and secondary schools.

“For children in this category, they want to get education but it is apparently expensive for their families,” the UK-based Nigerian, a chartered accountant recounted.

Adeagbo also pleaded with the president-elect to partner civil society and development agencies to accelerate development in the West African country.

“As a foundation, we will continue to remain committed to our vision of ensuring that we reduce the number of children without education in Nigeria,’’ she stated.

Adeagbo re-stated that IA-Foundation had been able to put over 100 children back to school in nine states in the country, including Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Delta, Nasarawa, Kwara and the Federal Capital Territory.

“We have also donated more than 3,000 learning resources to ensure that no child drops out of school, due to a lack of learning materials.’’

Adeagbo said: “we are not satisfied yet because although what we have done is significant in terms of impact but it’s a drop in the ocean with 20.2 million children out-of-school.

“That is why this year, we are organising our annual fund-raising and charity event, tagged `Securing the Future’, to mobilise resources in the UK to cater for the needs of children in Nigeria.’’

NAN reports that on Sept. 7, 2022, the Federal Government faulted the recent report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), in which it claimed that the number of out-of-school children had risen to little above 20 million.

Previously, it was estimated that Nigeria has little above 10 million children who are not in school for one reason or the other, but the figure was reported to have risen significantly due to rising insecurity and destruction of communities by armed non-state actors in the northern Nigeria and some parts of the south.

The federal government said the statistics does not reflect the true state of affairs in Nigeria, particularly in the subject matter of out-of-school children.

The federal government said it has a reliable template which it uses to determine the number of children born in Nigeria per time, and the number of out-of-school children, maintaining that the figure is not as high as UNESCO had claimed.

The government said it uses reliable template with National Population Commission (NPopC) to calculate this in order to arrive at a reliable and acceptable figure. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Sadiya Hamza

By Philip Yatai

Prof. Zakari Ladan of the Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry, Kaduna State University (KASU), and other co-researchers, have developed a mosquito repellent fabric.

In a statement by the Public Relations Officer of KASU, Adamu Bargo, in Kaduna on Sunday, the institution said this was part of efforts aimed at ending the malaria scourge.

Bargo said that the product was the outcome of more than  N27 million Research Grant, under the 2020 National Research Fund (NRF), of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).

“This is the first NRF/TETFund grant won by KASU as the host Institution, in collaboration with Bingham University and Vaal University of Technology, South Africa,” he said.

He identified the research topic as “Development of an Eco-friendly Mosquito Repellent Fabric, Embedded with Nanoparticles Encapsulated with Vitex Negundo Bioactive Compounds”.

He said that Ladan, the principal researcher, with specialty in organic and synthetic chemistry, conducted the research alongside three others.

The spokesman said the other researchers were; Dr Bamidele Okoli, an organic chemist from Bingham University, Dr Uju Ejike, a biochemist from Bingham University and Dr Mthunzi Fanyana, an expert in nanotechnology from Vaal University of Technology, South Africa.

He added that nightgowns were produced from the fabric, rather than the continuous use of chemical insecticides or mosquito-treated nets with synthetic chemicals.

Bargo explained that the fabric was embedded with nanoparticles encapsulated with Vitex Negundo bioactive compounds for the control of mosquitoes.

“The research is focused on producing a mosquito-repellent fabric, embedded with nanoparticles encapsulated with the active constituents of Vitex Negundo bioactive compounds.

“The type of mosquito-repellent fabrics developed from this research is in the form of sleeping nightgowns with other bio-products.

“They include bio-insecticide sprays and repellent creams, formulated with the plant’s bioactive constituent for the control of mosquito bites,” he said.

According to Bargo, the grant under the supervision of Prof. Ben Chindo, Director of Research and Development, KASU, has fulfilled TETFund’s requirements, having achieved the project’s objectives.

He said that the project had achieved its objectives based on the expected outcomes, including the production of the nightgowns from the mosquito repellent fabric.

Other outcomes, he said, included two international conferences, and the publishing of seven articles in high-impact factor journals and two conference proceedings.

“The researchers also patented a novel essential oil pilot plant that can isolate aromatic bioactive constituents from plants, useful in the cosmetic, pharmaceutical and flavour industries.”

Bargo added that an NRF/ TETFund Workshop was also organised at Bingham University, Karu, on the topic: “Malaria Prevention and Control Measures, using Some Plant Bioactive Constituents Found in North Central Geo-political Zone of Nigeria.“

“Five different products were formulated, using isolated bioactive constituents of Vitex Negundo plant, namely; mosquito repellent cream and pure eucalyptus oil,” he said.

Bargo listed others to include; aerosol sprays, mosquito repellent spray fitted with fan and gloss, and water-based mosquito repellent paint. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

FDY/YI/DOR

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Edited by Yahaya Isah/Nyisom Fiyigon Dore

By Ruth Oketunde

The Federal Government has lauded the British charity, IA-Foundation for the commitment shown by the charity in tackling the out-of-school crisis in Nigeria.

Vice-President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo gave the commendation in a message to IA-Foundation, to commemorate the fourth annual Black-Tie and Charity Ball of the organisation.

Osinbajo’s message is contained in a message e-mailed to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) by the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of IA-Foundation, Mrs Ibironke Adeagbo, in Abuja on Tuesday.

The event with theme, “Securing the Future”, is scheduled to hold on March 8 at Bishop Justus CE School in Bromley, Kent in England.

Osinbajo hailed IA-Foundation for offering strategic support to Nigeria’s education sector, saying that the charity had contributed immensely to Nigeria’s growth.

According to the vice-president, IA-Foundation has made remarkable impact in reducing the number of girls who are unable to access education, due to poverty, insecurity or poor orientation about the importance of acquiring education.

“Given the number of girls who remain out of school in our country and may never have the opportunity of formal education, girl-child education is an all-important assignment.

“I whole-heartedly commend the commitment and dedication that IA-Foundation has deployed so far in getting our girls educated,’’ Osinbajo stated.

Similarly, the Chair of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, commended the foundation for its consistency in the past four year in ensuring that children who were previously out of school were able to access quality education.

“For an organisation that has over 95 per cent of its leadership based in the UK to have executed projects across nine states in Nigeria, and also helping 100 children back to school is highly commendable.

“Government needs the support and partnership of the diaspora communities and I am happy that IA-Foundation is complementing the efforts of our government in the education sector to combat the problem of out-of-school children,’’ she said.

Dabiri-Erewa called on other Nigerians and Nigerian-owned businesses in the diaspora to emulate IA-Foundation and be part of the development and transformation of Nigeria.

IA-Foundation Black-Tie and Charity Ball is an annual event, organised to intimate well-meaning individuals and the corporate world about the education deficit in Nigeria and mobilise resources to provide quality education for out-of-school children in Nigeria.

Fund generated from the event is channeled towards support for pupils and families, especially the girl-child; persons with disabilities and orphans.

Some high-profile Nigerians, including the Nigerian High Commissioner to the UK, Amb. Sarafa Ishola, and a former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, are expected at the event.

Also expected at the event is the Chairman of the Nigeria-Business Forum, Prince Folabi Andu, and other eminent Nigerians residing in the UK.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country has about 20.2 million kids out-of-school, a development caused by lingering insecurity, poverty and other issues plaguing the country.

However, IA-Foundation, which is based in Kent, took up the challenge four years ago, providing scholarships to hapless kids, to enable them get quality education.

The foundation is active in nine states in Nigeria, including Lagos, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Delta, Ekiti, Kwara, Nasarawa State and the Federal Capital Territory.

The charity has also spent handsomely to provide portable water in some poor communities in Lagos, Nigeria’s economic hub. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Silas Nwoha

By Funmilayo Adeyemi

The registration for the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME) has ended after a one-week extension announced by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

The Head, Public Affairs and Protocol of the board, Dr Fabian Benjamin, made this known in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.

It would be recalled that the board had granted the extension to accommodate candidates who could not register for the 2023 UTME within the allowable window of Jan. 14 to Feb. 14, due to recent developments in the country.

Benjamin said that at the close of the registration, about 1.6 million candidates had successfully registered for the 2023 UTME.

” This number does not include the Direct Entry component of the exercise which had started on Monday, 20th February, 2023 before it was put on hold on Tuesday, 21st February, 2023.

” The board registrar’s monitoring team which has gone round the country, was in Nasarawa and Delta states on the final day of the exercise to oversee its conclusion.

” In Asaba, Delta State, the team visited Trinity Innovation Hub CBT Centre; Delta State Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Uku CBT Centre 1 and 2; Delta State Library CBT and others.

” It was however, remarkable that none of these centres have any candidates waiting to be registered, indicating that almost all candidates who desires to register for the exercise have done so,” he said.

Benjamin further said that same situation was replicated in many centres in Nasarawa State as few candidates were seen at all the centres a day to the closing date and these were cleared before the close of work.

According to him, from every indication, this year’s exercise is shaping up to be the smoothest the board has ever had.

” However, based on reports received from the various monitoring teams across the country, the board will review its SIM number swap policy.

” This is because, it will now require the Telcos to confirm that the old SIM being put forward for swapping previously belonged to the applicant but had been issued to another person,” he said.

The JAMB spokesperson added that this would therefore, preclude the possibility of a `SIM welcome back’ before such swapping would be approved. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chinyere Bassey/Ekemini Ladejobi

By Jacinta Nwachukwu/Veronica Dariya

Mrs Francisca Ifeanyichukwu, the Head of School, New Ideas Academy, Bwari, has advocated the availability of functional health facilities at all school premises.

Ifeanyichukwu made the call, while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondent, who visited the school on Tuesday in Abuja on a survey to check the school’s health facility.

She explained even though the academy did not operate a boarding session, it was only appropriate for it and other schools to ensure functional first aid kits were available at all times in case of any casualty.

“It is something that is essential for all schools, irrespective, because these are children of different ages and anything can happen at any time. We do not pray for it though.

“However, all schools must be ready to first aid treatment to their students if the need arises.

“If it becomes worse, a vehicle must be ready to take the victim to the nearest hospital in the company of at least, a teacher.

“It is not just about having an empty sick bay or empty first aid box but school administrators must ensure they have all the vitals available, to forestall a worst case scenario.”

Ifeanyichukwu said that her school did not keep drugs among its first aid kits because they would not administer drugs without proper prescriptions.

She, however, explained that the kits had in them, bandages, plasters, methylated spirits, iodine, hand gloves and other precautionary essentials.

According to her, should there be any case of a student fainting, we have trained hands who can give Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) or mouth to mouth resuscitation, after pouring water on the victim.

“If it doesn’t work, we have school vehicles at standby to take the victim to the Bwari General Hospital, which is not far away from us.

“We pray for no such ills though.”

She also encouraged Non-Governmental Organisations  to give support and donate to schools towards building or enhancing already existing health facilities.

NAN correspondent was also at Government Secondary School, Kuduru in Bwari, to ascertain the existence of a functional sick bay for the students.

However, a teacher in the school who pleaded anonymity said that the principal of the school was not available as at time of the visit to officially attend to the matter.

He, however, said that the school’s sick bay was operational but the facility was in dire need of an upgrade with basic equipment to attend to the sick.

He also called on the school’s alumni association to donate toward enhancing the facility if they could as a way of giving back to the school after passing through its learning process.

Similar, at Federal Government Girls College (FGGC), Bwari NAN correspondent was asked to write an official letter, requesting to carry out its survey on ascertaining availability of a sick bay in the school before an audience would be granted.

NAN reports that the survey was prompted after a 12 year old girl died at Chrisland Academy in Lagos, during the school’s inter-house sports competition recently.

On the availability of standard sick bay in schools, a nurse, at the Federal Government College, Rubochi, who did not want her name to be mentioned said “the school has a standard health clinic within the premises’’.

She said that they always reported any health challenge beyond their control to the General Hospital at the area where doctors would attend to the student.

“We equally contact the parents of such students in the case of any serious illness either to come and take the child or continue the treatment at the hospital.”

Also at the Government Sciences and Technical Secretary School, Abaji, a teacher of the school said that the school had a sick bay with some drugs.

The teacher said that anytime a child was indisposed, the nurse in the sickbay would administer first aid drugs and if the illness persisted, the school would ask the parents to take the student to the hospital. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Abiemwense Moru/Grace Yussuf