TheCable

President Bola Tinubu has appointed Lawal Ja’afaru-Isa as the executive secretary of the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education.

Almajiri is a system of Islamic education practised in northern Nigeria.

Tinubu urged Ja’afaru-Isa to ensure the realisation of the administration’s drive to guarantee comprehensive education for out-of-school children.

The commission was established to provide a multi-modal system of education for the millions of children not attending school.

According to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), 12.4 million children in Nigeria have never attended school and 5.9 million dropped out of school early.

UNICEF further said Nigeria’s out of school population accounts for 15 percent of the global total, with more than 50 percent of girls not attending school in basic education level.

The president also appointed Tijani Hashim-Abbas as his special adviser on chieftaincy matters.

Ajuri Ngelale, special adviser to the president on media and publicity, announced the appointments in a statement on Friday.

Ja’afaru-Isa was military governor of Kaduna state from 1993 to 1996, while Hashim-Abbas is the Sarkin Sudan Kano.

“President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Brigadier-General Lawal Ja’afar Isa (Rtd) as Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education,” the statement reads.

“The President has also approved the appointment of Alhaji Tijani Hashim Abbas as Senior Special Assistant to the President on Chieftaincy Matters.

“General Ja’afar Isa is a respected leader and was Military Administrator of Kaduna State from 1993 to 1996, while Alhaji Tijani Hashim Abbas is the Sarkin Sudan Kano.

“The President anticipates that the new appointees will bring their vast experience into these important roles, which impact the very core of society, while ensuring that his administration’s drive to guarantee Nigeria’s out-of-school children the most comprehensive education is realized in the superceding interest of the nation’s future.”