The Kaduna State Government in North West Nigeria, has declared its support for the reintegration of out-of-school adolescent mothers and survivors of child marriage. This is just as the Teenage Network has emphasized that reintegration is a necessity to curb intergenerational poverty and improve education, health among others..
The Commissioner for Education, Prof. Abubakar Sani Sambo made the commitment during a meeting with the Teenage Network, a nonprofit organization working to promote access to education for adolescent girls in Nigeria.
At the meeting, the Executive Director of Teenage Network, Ms. Olanike Timipa-Uge advocated for government’s support in the reintegration of adolescent mothers into the formal education system.
In the commissioner’s words, “Kaduna State Government is prepared to collaborate with Teenage Network and provide the necessary support to ensure adolescent mothers are back in classrooms.”
The Teenage Network delegation further engaged other key state actors including the AGILE Project State Coordinator, Director Kaduna State Agency for Mass Literacy and Non-Formal Education, the Reaching Out of School Children (ROOSC) Project Coordinator, and the District Heads of Doka and Bunun Zazzau.
The discussions emphasized the ripple effect of keeping adolescent mothers out of school.
Studies have shown that children born to uneducated mothers are twice less likely to be educated and to die from vaccine prevented death. Reintegrating adolescent mothers and child brides into the education system therefore is a necessity to curb intergenerational poverty and improve education, health and economic outcomes in the state. This calls for structured institutional coordination to facilitate their return back into the education system.
Ongoing state-level data mapping has begun across LGAs to identify sustainable reintegration models that are flexible and relevant for the future of work. Engagement with traditional leaders further underscored the centrality of social norm transformation, community mobilization, and accountability in advancing adolescent mothers’ education in the state.
This engagement represents a change of trajectory for adolescent mothers and married girls in Kaduna State as Teenage Network with support from Malala Fund partners with the State government to develop a coordinated framework that ensures that no girl is left out of the Kaduna state education plan.
