Rakiya A.Muhammad
Sokoto State has sponsored 18,672 females in five years to study in various institutions of higher learning within Nigeria, Special Adviser to Governor Aminu Tambuwal on female education, Hajiya Aeesha Maina disclosed.
A breakdown showed 3,075 sponsored for the 2015/2016 session,3,489 for the 2016/2017 session,4,432 for the 2017/2018 session,4,387 for 2018/2019, and 3,289 for the 2019/2020 session.
She noted that Governor Tambuwal established the Board for Female Education to directly fastrack female education, support service and reorientation across the state.
Hajiya Aeesha said the board promotes female education through facilitation of enrolment, attendance, retention, completion and transition into various educational institutions of higher learning.
She added it creates awareness through mobilisation and advocacy on the value of female education in rural and urban areas of the state.
“Through the board in 2018,115 indigent girls were given sponsorship to study in FGGC Tambuwal. Out of the number 52 have graduated with flying colours as none have less than seven credits, i.e. the
requirements for university admission,” she stated.
The Special Adviser disclosed the board supported 40 orphan girls and 40 physically challenged girls with back-to-school kits to encourage them to continue their studies last year.
With the intervention of NIPEP/World Bank and Girls Project on Education (GPE) to the board, she expressed joy that the board had solved some of its major challenges in some girl schools.
She noted such to include the provision of 815 chairs to accommodate 1750 in seven girls’ schools, renovation of a block of six classrooms
in government girls day secondary school, Runjin Sambo and capacity building for members of the school- management committee and others in promoting girl-child education in the state.