The Reaching Out-of-School Children team in Kaduna State has sought the collaboration of Kaduna State University (KASU) to support efforts aimed at bringing children back to school. The team paid a courtesy visit to the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Abdullahi Ibrahim Musa, on Thursday, 21st August 2025, at the Vice Chancellor’s Conference Room. The Vice Chancellor was represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Strategy, Innovation and Service Delivery), Prof. Helen Afang Andow, while the Provost of the College of Postgraduate Studies, Prof. Sadiq Garba Abdu, was in attendance.
Leading the visiting team, the Project Coordinator, Mr. Ezra Angai, expressed appreciation to the university management for the warm reception and congratulated KASU on its new colleges and recent awards. He explained that the visit was part of efforts to seek collaboration with KASU in implementing the Reaching Out-of-School Children project, a landmark initiative considered the first of its kind among subnationals in Nigeria.
According to him, the Kaduna State Government, in partnership with key development partners including the Islamic Development Bank, is working to ensure that children of school age, those above school age, and those currently out of school, are reintegrated into the educational system. He revealed that the project aims to return 200,000 out-of-school children to classrooms within the next four years.
Mr. Angai highlighted three major strategies of the project: addressing issues of access through the construction of 102 new schools and renovation of 107 existing ones; ensuring credible learning outcomes; and strengthening the system through capacity building and training for officers involved. He noted that Kaduna State University, as a foremost learning institution in the country, has been identified as a key partner in driving the success of the initiative. He further disclosed plans to liaise with KASU’s Faculty of Education to develop a robust framework that would support the sustainability of the project.
Responding on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Andow welcomed the delegation and commended the vision of the project. She emphasized that KASU’s strategic plan remains a guiding principle for the institution’s management and expressed concern that the rising number of children who are out of school poses serious risks to the nation’s development and stability. She described the initiative as a noble service to humanity and assured the team of KASU’s readiness to collaborate by contributing its expertise in teaching, research, and related areas.
She further conveyed the Vice Chancellor’s delight at the opportunity for partnership and reaffirmed the university’s commitment to supporting efforts aimed at reducing the number of out-of-school children. The visit ended with a group photograph.