By Abiola Olawale
Former two-term President of Nigeria as well as a former military Head of State, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has raised concern about the potential danger of the increasing number out-of-school children in Nigeria.
Obasanjo, in his address at an event in Bauchi State on Sunday, described the increasing figures of children who are out of school as alarming and a ticking time bomb.
He pointed out that about 10% of the nation’s population who should be in school are not receiving any formal education.
According to him, about 20 million falls into this category, making them vulnerable to recruitment by extremist groups such as Boko Haram and bandits in the future.
He said: “These children, not equipped to develop their innate abilities to serve themselves or their communities, are being prepared for recruitment into whatever form Boko Haram or banditry will take in the next 10 to 15 years.”
He emphasized that addressing the educational crisis is crucial not only for the development of Nigeria but also for its long-term security.
Obasanjo added: “Let me emphasize what we want to do: human capacity building, education and human capacity building are very important.
“World Bank says we have over 20 million children who should be in school that are not in school for a population of about 230 million.
“So, that is 10 per cent of our population that should be in school that are not in school. Governor, your royal highnesses, brothers and sisters, that is recruitment for future Boko Haram, nobody needs to tell us that.
“Apart from being that 10 per cent of our population are not being equipped to develop their innate ability and capacity to be able to serve themselves, their family, their community, we are also preparing them to be recruited in 10 to 15 years for whatever form of Boko Haram it will be that time, whatever form of banditry it will be.”
