Second chance opportunities for out-of-school girl-children through wide range of multi-sectoral interventions in education has improved school enrolment in Zamfara, an official has said.

The Project Coordinator of the Adolescent Girl’s Initiative for Learning and Empowerment Additional Finance (AGILE-AF), Hajiya Sa’adatu Abdul-Gusau, disclosed this at the one-day summit to commemorate the 2023 International Day of Girl-child held in Gusau on Wednesday.

Sa’adatu said AGILE Project was a World Bank Assisted Project in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education domiciled in the Zamfara Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.

It is aimed at improving adolescent girls education in public secondary schools, Integrated Qur’anic Schools (IQS) and community schools.

The project was design to achieve through a wide range of multi-sectoral interventions in Education, Gender, Health, Nutrition, Population, Social Protection, Life Skills, Jobs creation, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene.

She added that Gov. Dauda Lawal has committed his administration to the project in the state.

She said the governor’s passion is demonstrated in addressing the identified gaps in the education of adolescent girls of the state, including high cost of schooling, which prevents many girls from attending the schools, law enrolment and high drop-out rates among girls that manage to enrol, forced marriage in some communities, Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and general unsafe learning environment for girls.

She said the AGILE Project has come to change the narrative for the betterment of our teaming girls by construction of classrooms and rehabilitation of the dilapidated structures, WASH facilities, Life Skills, Digital Literacy, Science and ICT laboratories, Safe learning environment and girls support programmes, among others.

Ms. Rumaisa Bashir,a student of Government Day Secondary School, Tudunwada Gusau, appealed to government to provide safe learning environment in all schools and almajiri integrated Islamiya system in the state.

In her presentation on the “effect of banditry on children, especially girls”, Bashir noted with concern how the activities of banditry and other crimes caused setback to education.

The state Commissioner for Women, Children and Social Development, Dr. Nafisa Maradun, called for collaboration with all stakeholders in educating children, especially girls.

The commissioner, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr. Habibu Yalwa, said the education of the future generation should be a source of concern for all as insecurity had devastated the sector.