The Kano state governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, offered an immediate scholarship to Faiza Abubakar, who got a distinction in all nine subjects at the 2016 West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE), making her the best candidate in the country.
Faiza who graduated as the best student from Olumawu College, Abuja, is from Bakin Zuwo, Kano Municipal area. Her performance moved the Kano state government to award her a scholarship that will cover her undergraduate, postgraduate and doctorate degrees.
On Saturday, Mr. Ganduje, the governor, expressed his happiness about Faizah’s performance. He mentioned that the scholarship was his government’s commitment to acknowledging merit, and promised continuous support for girl-child education in the state.
“We are happy that this child has performed very well and I want to assure [everyone] that we will continue to encourage our people to achieve in their chosen endeavours and bring honour to their families, the state and the nation at large,” he said. “This gesture is to acknowledge merit and to especially encourage girl-child education in our state,” he added.
According to reports, Faiza who intends to study Medicine already has admission offers from seven universities in the United Kingdom, and one university in Egypt.
The bias against the female gender is a major topic of discussion among human right activists and political analysts. Moreso, various NGO’s are making efforts to promote gender equality and ensure the protection of women’s right. The denial of the female right to education is a big problem in the northern part of Nigeria. This underscores the level of prejudice against the girl-child in this part of the world. Faizah’s excellent performance provides a strong case for female education to be taken seriously.
What if Faizah was an ‘almajiri’?
If Faizah were not opportune to be educated, it’s possible that she might have ended up an ‘almajiri’ (a street beggar). There are brilliant girls like Faiza roaming the streets, begging for survival, or nursing children at an early age. Many others are denied their rights to education as they are used as child domestic helps, rather than being to sent to school. In a typical Africa setting, parents would rather send their male child to school while the girl-child stays at home. This hinges on the idea that female children will end up as a wife.
In 2013, a report by Africa Health, in collaboration with Human and Social Development Information, revealed that the 10 states with the highest number of girls not in Secondary school were in North West, North East, and North Central Nigeria. These states are Kebbi, Sokoto, Bauchi, Jigawa, Yobe, Zamfara, Katsina, Gombe, Niger and Jigawa. The report also noted that these states have the highest percentage of females between age 15 and 24 who cannot read or write. In addition, these states have the highest cases of adolescent marriage and adolescent childbearing.
To change the status quo, northern state governments have been doing a lot for female education. Earlier this year, the Sultan of Sokoto announced plans to invest in girl’s education by setting up all Women’s College of Medicine in Sokoto.
Why we need to promote female education
In the later part of 2015, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) came up with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The fourth SDG is to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”. This goal implies that by 2030, states of the world will ensure that all boys and girls complete free, fair and quality primary and secondary education.
As part of the international community, it is imperative for the Nigerian government to work towards the achievement of the fourth SDG. We must not overlook female education. The northern governors should emulate Governor Ganduje and make efforts to promote the education of the girl child.
Education is a right, not a privilege. This should be the primary principle to guide the education policies in Nigeria. Male and female children must have equal access to primary and secondary education. It is on this basis that Nigeria will have sustainable development. The scholarship awarded to Faiza is a step in the right direction. But more needs to be done to ensure that females are not denied their rights to quality education.
