Key figures in Kaduna State have renewed their advocacy for the establishment of life skills education for girls, emphasizing its role in enhancing educational outcomes, protecting adolescents, and preparing them for future life experiences.
The appeal was raised during a follow-up meeting of essential stakeholders focused on the strategic institutionalization of life skills as part of the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) Project, which took place in Abuja on Thursday.
In her remarks to the press at the event, the Executive Director of the Centre for Girls’ Education (CGE), Habiba Mohammed, highlighted that this engagement signifies a pivotal transition from temporary projects to a systematic reform regarding girls’ education.
"What we have concluded today is not just another meeting; it marks a clear transition from project-based experimentation to system-wide reform in how we prepare young individuals, particularly girls, for life beyond the classroom," she stated.
She pointed out that for over 18 years, CGE has been working across northern Nigeria and parts of West Africa to ensure that educational systems equip girls with practical skills and confidence. Mohammed elaborated that their Safe Space model integrates life skills, literacy, numeracy, health knowledge, and leadership and has yielded quantifiable results.
Mohammed cited evidence from programs such as AGILE, supported by the World Bank, and the Adolescent Girls Initiative (AGI), backed by UNFPA, which have demonstrated improvements in school retention rates, delayed marriages, enhanced decision-making capabilities among girls, and healthier relationships between schools and communities.
She shared that discussions during the meeting included updates on a proposed bill aiming to institutionalize life skills as a co-curricular subject in public secondary schools throughout Kaduna State, indicating that this initiative could have significant implications for girls' education, protection, and long-term life prospects.
"Life skills are by no means mere 'soft outcomes.' They are essential abilities that safeguard learning, dignity, and future opportunities," she emphasized.
Additional discussions among stakeholders revolved around establishing a solid institutional framework to embed life skills education, which includes policy and legal integration, curriculum adoption, budget allocations, and clearly defined governance roles for the Ministry of Education, the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), the Senior Secondary Schools Education Board, and the Kaduna State School Quality Assurance Authority.
Mahmud Lawal, Chairman of the House Committee on Education at the Kaduna State House of Assembly, assured attendees that the legislature is committed to ensuring the bill is enacted into law. "The bill aims to guarantee that our students are protected and receive quality life skills education. That’s the essence of this legislation," he stated.
As the Deputy Chief Whip of the Assembly, Lawal asserted that lawmakers will focus on making sure the bill addresses its goals effectively, avoids overlapping with existing laws, and ensures practical implementation upon passage.
Maryam Sani Dangaji, AGILE project coordinator in Kaduna State, remarked that the program, supported by the World Bank and active in 21 states, has made significant investments in life skills education for adolescent girls over the last two to three years. She noted that AGILE's life skills component emphasizes crucial areas like personal hygiene, health, leadership, self- efficacy, confidence, and the importance of education—skills that traditional classroom settings often overlook.
"We aim to prevent the deterioration of our initiatives as the project approaches its conclusion. Therefore, we are urging the state government to sustain this considerable investment by incorporating life skills into the state’s curriculum as a non-examinable subject," she explained.
Dangaji stressed the necessity for broad stakeholder involvement, including religious leaders, parents, community groups, and relevant ministries, to ensure resistance is minimized and implementation is smooth.
Professor Abubakar Sani Sambo, the Commissioner for Education in Kaduna State, stated that approximately 40,000 adolescent girls in the state had benefited from a structured life skills education program, as Governor Uba Sani seeks to institutionalize the initiative across public secondary schools. The state government remarked that this program is part of broader efforts to strengthen girl-child education and equip students with practical skills beyond academic knowledge.
Comments (0)
You must be logged in to comment.
Be the first to comment on this article!