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The UN Children’s Fund says 10.5 million children are not attending school in Nigeria even though primary education is officially free and compulsory. To help out-of-school children in the country’s north where there have been attacks by extremists, the American University of Nigeria has launched a so-called “Feed and Read” school. Percy Dabang reports from Yola, Nigeria.
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LanguageEnglish
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((PLAYBOOK SLUG: Nigeria Children Education (TV)
HEADLINE: American University in Nigeria Launches Program to Help School Children
TEASER:
PUBLISHED AT: 02/16/2022
BYLINE: Percy Dabang
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Yola, Nigeria
VIDEOGRAPHER: Halley Cromwell
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: BR, MAS
VIDEO SOURCE(S): All VOA Original
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV XRADIO X
TRT:
VID APPROVED BY:
TYPE: TVPKG
UPDATE:))
((INTRO))
[[The UN Children’s Fund says 10.5 million children are not attending school in Nigeria even though primary education is officially free and compulsory. To help out-of-school children in the country’s north where there have been attacks by extremists, the American University of Nigeria has launched a so-called “Feed and Read” school. Percy Dabang reports from Yola, Nigeria.]]
((VIDEO-VOA: JOY AND HER MOTHER ST HOME-various))
((NARRATION))
Nine-year-old Joy Waya fled her home with her family to the city of Yola in 2014 after an attack by Boko Haram.
She lives with her mother and nine other siblings in a family that earns barely enough to eat so there is no money for school fees.
But now Joy is enrolled at the Feed and Read School in Yola, where she joins other girls for daily lessons.
((Joy Waya, Student (in Hausa 14 sec))
“We fled the insurgency from Hon to Yola and I have not been enrolled in school because there is no money. My aunt heard about this school and she brought me. I have learned personal hygiene, my ABCs, and arithmetic.”
((VIDEO-VOA: PUPILS WASHING HANDS AND EATING-various))
((NARRATION))
The children are fed a meal after each class, under this program set up by the American University of Nigeria.
((Blessing Bello, Volunteer Teacher)) ((in English, 17 SEC))
“Feed and Read program is mainly education and feeding, because some of them the food they get here may be the only good meal they have in a day. So, the idea of Feed and Read is to be able to teach them and also for them to have some meal to go back to.”
((VIDEO-VOA: BOYS IN CLASS, PRESIDENT ENSIGN WALKING TO HER OFFICE-various))
((NARRATOR))
50 out-of-school boys are also enrolled in the school. The president of American University who initiated the program says a global center will be set up to share information and solutions to the problem of out-of-school children.
((Margee Ensign, President of American University Nigeria)) ((English 22 sec))
“So, we have unique experience reaching out-of-school children. We want to share that knowledge and the Global center will be where everyone in the world can come. // ((Cutaway - footage of children in the class)) So, we will start with a global conference where we bring together scholars and researchers and international institutions who want to focus not just on documenting how many, but how we can solve the issue.”
((VIDEO-VOA: CHILDREN ON THE STREETS -various))
((NARRATOR))
Nigeria has over ten million children that are not attending school, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund. The problem is especially acute in the northeastern part of the country, where the extremist group Boko Haram has attacked schools.
The Feed and Read program will help get more children back in school, says a UNICEF official in Nigeria.
((Phuong Nguyen, UNICEF Maiduguri Field Office)) ((English 22 sec))
((Mandatory Courtesy: Zoom))
“I think a program such as the Feed and Read will certainly be very complementary to the work that UNICEF and our partners are trying to do, which is to make sure that we have a child-friendly protective learning space where children are ready to learn, they are fed.”
((VIDEO-VOA: CHAFARI AND HER DAUGHTER JOY WORKING AT HOME-various))
Back home, Joy's mother is excited that her daughter is back in school.
((Chafari Waya, Joy’s Mother (Hausa, 17 secs))
“I don’t have the financial strength to enroll her in school and it is a problem. That is why I enrolled her so they can help her to get an education even if it is for a few days.”
((VIDEO-VOA: more footage of children in class))
((NARRATOR))
For children like Joy, the program is their only hope to get an education.
((Percy Dabang, for VOA News, Yola, Nigeria))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateFebruary 17, 2022 07:17 EST
BylinePercy Dabang
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
