By Gift ChapiOdekina, Abuja

Stakeholders at a high-level gathering on education and gender inclusion have issued a passionate call for collective action to address Nigeria’s worsening girl-child education crisis, warning that failure to act now could have far-reaching consequences for the nation’s future.

Speakers at the event, organised by the Rochas Foundation under the theme “Give to Gain: Women, Education and Impact – The Ripple Effect,” stressed that educating the girl child remains one of the most powerful tools for societal transformation, but lamented that millions of girls are still being left behind.

In a stirring address, The Director General of the foundation, Uchechi Rochas challenged participants to move beyond rhetoric, describing the gathering not as a ceremonial event but a “call to duty.”

“Should I say welcome, or should I say sorry you are here?” the speaker asked. “Because there is a problem, and each one of you in this room is part of the ripple so you must fix it.”

Citing nearly three decades of intervention, the foundation revealed it has impacted over 41,000 young people across Africa. However, this figure pales in comparison to the scale of the crisis, with an estimated 7.8 million girls out of school in Nigeria and over 10.2 million children affected nationwide.

“If we place 41,000 beside 7.8 million, you will agree the problem is bigger than us,” the speaker said. “This is not a welcome it is a recruitment. It takes all of us to fix this.”

Rochas emphasised that its advocacy is rooted in research and lived realities, not sentiment. According to the speaker, educating a girl creates a multiplier effect that extends beyond the individual to families, communities, and entire nations.

“When a girl is educated, the ripple does not stop with her. It reaches her family, her community, and ultimately humanity,” the speaker noted.

Highlighting the urgency, she drew attention to the realities in parts of northern Nigeria, where many girls are forced into early marriage instead of being in classrooms.

“Education for the girl child is not just literacy,” the speaker said. “It is empowerment. It is permission to speak. It is permission not to get married at 16.”

The event also spotlighted real-life success stories, including that of Zainab, a former beneficiary who has grown into an educator and leader.

“Zainab was once like the girls we speak of today. But because she was given an opportunity, she is now shaping lives,” the speaker said. “If we fail the girl today, we fail the woman tomorrow.”

Delivering the keynote address, former Liberian President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, commended the foundation for its sustained investment in young Africans, describing it as a model for long-term development.

She recalled her visit to the foundation’s institution in Imo State in 2017, where she witnessed firsthand the transformative impact of its programmes.

“I saw young people from across Africa learning together, growing together, and building a shared sense of purpose,” she said. “I had not seen anything quite like it.”

Sirleaf noted that nearly half of the foundation’s beneficiaries are girls, describing this as a strategic investment in Africa’s future.

“When you educate a girl, you do not just change her life you change the trajectory of entire generations,” she stated.

However, she cautioned that education alone is insufficient without pathways to leadership and economic inclusion.

“If we educate girls but fail to create opportunities for them to lead, then we have only done half the work,” she warned.

She further stressed the need for deliberate policies to ensure women’s inclusion in governance and decision-making, noting that progress does not happen by chance.

“Every classroom that opens to a girl today is a parliament, a court, and a community that changes tomorrow,” she added.

Also speaking, a European Union representative to Nigeria, Mr Gautier Mignot highlighted the broader developmental impact of gender equality, describing girls’ education as a “powerful lever” for sustainable growth.

Drawing from personal experience, the diplomat recounted a visit to an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in Nigeria, where an 18-year-old girl who had never attended school said her greatest dream was simply “to go to school.”

“That moment was deeply moving,” he said. “Just hours later, we visited another school where children especially girls were eager and happy to learn. The contrast was striking.”

He stressed that gender equality is not just a matter of fairness but a prerequisite for national development.

“Mixed-gender groups perform better and make better decisions. When women and men work together, everyone wins,” he said.

The EU envoy also pointed to systemic barriers such as poverty, gender-based violence, and lack of basic facilities like sanitary products and safe restrooms as key factors keeping girls out of school.

“There are very few investments as profitable for a community as investing in girls’ education,” he added.

Participants unanimously agreed that addressing the crisis requires a multi-stakeholder approach involving government, civil society, and development partners.

The Rochas Foundation reiterated its commitment to expanding access to education while urging individuals and institutions to take responsibility.

“It takes our voices, not our silence,” the foundation representative said.

“We must create spaces for girls not just seats at the table, but the table itself.”

As the event drew to a close, stakeholders were left with a resounding message: the future of the girl child and by extension, the nation depends on urgent, collective, and sustained action.