A major education reform effort is underway in Kaduna State, where 8,700 School-Based Management Committee members are set to receive training aimed at revitalising basic education and reintegrating out-of-school children.
This announcement came from Mubarak Muhammad, Acting Chairman of KADSUBEB, during the kickoff of a six-day intensive training programme for 92 Social Mobilisation Officers across the 23 local government areas.
With backing from UNICEF and the ROOSC project, the officers will be responsible for cascading the training to SBMC members at the grassroots.
Muhammad outlined that the training modules will include leadership development, communication techniques, and resource mobilisation skills to foster stronger school-community partnerships.
He stressed that the initiative is designed to strengthen ties between the government and local communities while supporting efforts to enrol more children in school.
UNICEF official Bala Dada highlighted that over 768,000 school-age children in Kaduna are currently out of school.
The target is to return at least 200,000 of them to classrooms through the collaborative project.
Dada attributed the high number of out-of-school children to factors like poverty and insecurity, adding that SBMCs are pivotal in driving grassroots change in the education sector.