Lagos advocates birth control law to address Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis

The Lagos state government has called for the enactment of a birth control law to address the challenges of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

Jamiu Alli-Balogun, commissioner for basic and secondary education, said this during a regional stakeholders meeting in Ibadan, Oyo state capital, on August 14.

The meeting was organised by the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Oyo state ministry of education.

Alli-Balogun said the menace of out-of-school children must be tackled from the root.

“The issue of out-of-school children can be approached by applying birth control measures in Nigeria,” NAN quoted him as saying.

“If we keep giving birth without control and with limited resources then we cannot make progress.

“Therefore, government at the federal level should enact a law establishing what an average family size should be in Nigeria.

“But if we do not do that, we will continue to be in the same problem.”

The commissioner said the Lagos government has solicited the support of stakeholders in the state to take children off the streets.

“We have put in place measures to minimise the menace. The Project O; that is zero tolerance for out-of-school children,” he said.

“Through this project, we combat poverty by empowering parents with the ability to send their children to school.

“We are building more schools and classrooms with the collaboration of other stakeholders.

“We are not resting on our achievements. We will remain committed due to the fact that every single child matters to us as clearly stated by UNICEF.”

He urged the federal government to implement the school feeding program for primary schools to encourage enrollment.

“This factor is readily available, the federal government has done it in the past and it was effective,” he added.

“If the federal government can probably create a budgetary line for it in our education system down to the state level, it will be a welcome fortune for states in addressing out-of-school children.

“The more we harness more resources, the more we take care of the children and improve our educational governance in Nigeria.”

• NAN