By Chris Onuoha

Special Foundation Ambassador, Chukwuma Nwanze has lamented over the failing state of education in Nigeria, stating that if adequate steps are not taken, the country may plunge into further crisis in that sector.

Nwanze stated this during a recent chat with the media, noting that as Nigeria prepares for the annual commemoration of Children’s Day anniversary on May 27, there is an urgent need to address the situation before it escalates.

“We have almost 14 million out-of-school children in Nigeria, which is equivalent to four times the population of Denmark. In Africa, that figure is equivalent to 25% of the population of South Africa, and four times the population of Gambia.

“According to UN reports, one-third of Nigerian children are not in school, and the report also stated that one in every five out-of-school children globally is a Nigerian. That is an unsettling fact. Sadly, this number is growing at the rate of 3.7 percent annually and we need to reduce this disastrous statistics one child at a time,” Nwanze said.

Nwanze disclosed that the goal of the Special Foundation, a privately funded social impact organisation that focuses on building Africa’s next set of leaders through education is to get 100,000 children into school by 2030, with a drive to inspire the next set of African leaders.

“The foundation organizes summer schools in communities across the country, and has improved the lives of over 5000 children in the last five years by offering scholarship opportunities, and in some cases providing intervention and mentorship,” he said.

The graduate of Cambridge International College and Warwick Business School, Coventry in the UK further explained that dreams are a function of the environment and the kind of education one has, adding that there is a need to ensure that no child is consumed by the darkness called illiteracy, so that they can dream and aspire to greatness.