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▪︎Supports over 2,000 displaced Benue children with learning materials
From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), with funding from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), has renovated four classroom blocks in Abagena IDP camp comprising 13 classrooms and provided teaching and learning materials for 2,400 Internally Displaced children in Benue State.
The UNICEF Chief of Enugu Field Office, Juliet Chiluwe disclosed this during the handover of the renovated classrooms and educational materials to the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and the Ministry of Education at Abagena IDP camp, Makurdi.
The UNICEF official said the intervention was aimed at ensuring that children affected by displacement continued to have access to safe, protective and supportive learning environments despite the disruption caused by the humanitarian crisis in the state.
According to UNICEF, eight canopy tents have also been provided as Temporary Learning Centres in Naka, Ortese, Mega Camp, Daudu 1 and Daudu 2 IDP camps to enable displaced children continue their education while awaiting more permanent learning facilities.
The organisation further supplied 250 school desks to children in Abagena Camp, Ortese, Mega Camp, Daudu 1 and Daudu 2, describing the intervention as part of efforts to restore dignity and comfort to children learning in displacement settings.
She said the teaching and learning materials being handed over are expected to benefit more than 2,000 internally displaced children, with a focus on improving literacy, numeracy, psychosocial wellbeing and active participation in learning.
Beyond infrastructure and learning materials, UNICEF said it had engaged 62 volunteer facilitators and mentors to teach and coordinate learners across 52 Accelerated Basic Education Programme and non-formal learning centres in six IDP camps in Benue.
The initiative, she said, was designed to support children who had missed formal schooling due to displacement to catch up with their peers, regain confidence and continue their education.
The UNICEF representative stressed that education remained critical during emergencies, providing children with stability, hope, protection and the skills required to rebuild their lives.
She called for sustained collaboration among government institutions, humanitarian and development partners, civil society organisations, the private sector, traditional and community leaders and donors to expand investments in education for displaced children.
She also urged stakeholders to provide more safe learning spaces, expand accelerated and formal education programmes, support teachers and facilitators, strengthen child protection and psychosocial support and create pathways for displaced learners to transition into formal schools.
Chiluwe who stated that “Education cannot wait,” said sustained investment was necessary to ensure that every displaced child in Benue had a fair opportunity to learn, recover and thrive.
Receiving the items on behalf of the State Government, the Commissioner for Education and Knowledge Management, Mrs. Margaret Adamu, expressed gratitude to UNICEF for their continued support to Benue State, especially in the area of access to education.
She said “We are happy that UNICEF is intervening in the education system in Benue State and it is a very great milestone of this present administration because it has brought access to quality education and for even those children we can consider as out of schools for now because of their peculiar situation.
“This intervention is not just in this camp, is in other camps and we have over 2000 children and you know that education is very key and important. So, UNICEF is bringing hope and succour to many homes”, she said.
Adamu noted that Governor Hyacinth Alia sees education as very important and considers it a heart of human capital development, which is evident in the massive renovation and equipping of public schools in the State.
According to her, “Under Governor Alia’s administration, everybody is important. Children are very small but there are great potentials in them. So, for what UNICEF has done with the support of SIDA, on behalf of Benue State government, we appreciate them because this is going to bridge the learning gaps that have ever existed and bring these children into the mainstream education informally.
She said “Sustainability is very important in whatever government is doing and that is why teachers were not brought from outside the camps but those that were trained within. I assure that whenever there is going to be recruitment exercise, these teachers will be brought into the mainstream so that there would be sustainability which is very important.
“Once in a while, we interact with those in the camps particularly the parents. They need to own these facilities and ensure that the place is secured and protected. They must take responsibility of this project to make sure that no theft is happening here and everything is going on well.”
She charged the beneficiaries to see this gesture as a golden opportunity, to grab it and use it by learning very well and warned against playing truancy and take care of whatever is provided to them.
Speaking on behalf of the 62 facilitators, Festus Azende, thanked UNICEF for providing them with robust training that would aid them to impact positive knowledge on the pupils.
He promised that they would put into use what they have learnt and produce great future leaders from the IDPs camps.
Some of the pupils, Janet Fafa and Myom Ayoosu thanked UNICEF and SIDA for their gesture saying many of their mates were sitting on the floor before the donation. They expressed confidence that the provisions will help them learn in a conducive environment.
