Fred Itua, Abuja
Immediate-past Minister of Education, Mr. Adamu Adamu, yesterday, revealed that the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria now stands at over 16 million.
The new revelation contradicted earlier claims that the number hovered around 10 to 13 million.
Speaking during his screening by the Senate, Adamu said his figure is based on a February 2019 census.
He said out of primary school children stands at 10 million, while children out of secondary school stands at six million.
He blamed the high number on lack of funds on the part of the the federal, state and local governments.
In his intervention, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, said the Legislature and the Executive arms must work together to get the children back to the classrooms.
He said: “It is our responsibility to get these children out of school. The Senate and the Executive need to work together to get these children back to the classroom. We can’t continue to have them on our streets. It poses a serious security problem and we need to stop it. Maybe that will be through more budgetary allocations.”
Adamu also claimed, while answering questions from senators, that more Nigerians are now corrupt despite President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-graft war.
