The United States Agency for International Development has committed about N157.8m ($801,000) to support the education of internally displaced persons in Adamawa State in collaboration with American University of Nigeria.
Speaking at the Grant Award Signing Ceremony in Yola, the United States Chargé d’Affaires, Maria Brewer, said the amount was in addition to the $100,000 grant awarded to the AUN in 2014.
According to her, the programme will not be limited to schools serving the indigenous children in Yola but other displaced children from other communities who have sought shelter in the community will be beneficiaries.
She said it was important for every Nigerian to be educated, saying that all over the world, multilateral organisations and non-governmental organisations were using education to raise global standards of living.
Brewer expressed sadness that about 77 per cent of children in the state could not read in any language, as revealed by the 2010 National Education Data Survey.
She said, “Education positively affects economic development and general health, while advancing civil rights. Where education is lacking, people are less likely to find economic opportunity. This leads to greater poverty and can open the doors to extremism and violence.
“With well-trained teachers, books, and other teaching materials, students’ reading scores can double or triple that of their peers who lacked proper instruction.”
She commended the success recorded by the AUN’s STELLAR initiative within a short period, adding that if the method was used in collaboration with the federal, state, local government agencies, school administrators and teachers, it could fill education gaps in Nigeria school system.
Brewer added, “President Buhari has spoken strongly of the need to promote education as a key component to fostering economic growth and social cohesion.
The American people stand ready to support his efforts to enhance your education system to make education accessible to all children in Nigeria.”
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