Federal Government with support from the World Bank has commenced a project known as AGILE to improve secondary education opportunities for adolescent girls and empower them to earn their living in the country.
National Project Coordinating Unit of the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) Project, Mrs. Amina Buba Haruna said the initiative would last 5-years
Mrs. Haruna while visiting beneficiary States to ascertain their levels of implementation and progress said there is need to boost girl’s education.
Mrs Haruna listed the benefitting states to include Borno, Ekiti, Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, and Plateau.
Visit to Ekiti State.
In Ekiti State, the NPCU led by the National Project Coordinator, Mrs. Amina Buba Haruna, said the team was in the State to find ways it could be of assistance to ensure effective project implementation for optimum results.
Mrs. Haruna emphasized the need for synergy among team members, and with the State Government so as to achieve the goals of the AGILE Project in the state.
The State’s Project Coordinator, Mrs. Oluwayemisi Alokan, took the NPCU to the Project’s construction sites to inspect and assess the standard of work being done especially in the utilisation of the School Improvement Grants (SIG), for the renovation of existing infrastructure in schools in the State.
Mrs. Alokan disclosed the challenges faced by the State Project Implementing Unit, (SPIU), and the subsequent efforts made to address them.
The visiting team also met with the State Commissioner for Education, and Permanent Secretary, Science and Technology, Ekiti State Ministry of Education Dr. Kofoworola Aderiye, and Dr. Folakemi Olomojobi, respectively. They expressed delight at the visit and pledged their commitment to the success of the
AGILE Project in Katsina State.
In Katsina State, the State Project Coordinator, Mr. Mustapha Shehu, also took the NPCU team around the Project’s sites to ascertain if the ongoing construction and renovation are in accordance with the World Bank’s prescribed construction and renovation standards.
The visiting team subsequently commended State’s Project Implementing Unit (SPIU) on the standard of work and advised it to partner with the Ministry of Agriculture, alongside community youths on the planting of trees in the targeted schools to mitigate the challenges of Climate Change.
The team also held a meeting with Katsina State’s Commissioner for Education, Associate Professor Badamasi Charanchi.
The Commissioner expressed delight at the visit, expressing Government’s commitment to the improvement of Girl-child education in the State.
Part of the facilities inspected in Ekiti and Katsina States includes: buildings being constructed or renovated, laboratories, libraries, hotels and their Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene, (WASH), facilities.
The AGILE Project has World Bank support to the tune of $500 million with prospects of improved funding.
RN