A non-governmental organisation, One Youth Global, has expressed deep concern over the deteriorating condition of federal and state-owned primary and secondary schools in Nigeria. The group is calling on the President, state governors, and relevant stakeholders to step up efforts to promote educational development across the country.
Speaking to newsmen after the grand finale of the ‘Spark Nation’ debate and quiz competition in Abakaliki, the President of One Youth Global, Mr. Uchechukwu Agbo, lamented the current state of public schools. He warned that unless urgent reforms are implemented, the country’s future could be at risk.
Mr. Agbo identified a number of pressing issues in public schools, including a lack of qualified teachers, dilapidated infrastructure, and the absence of modern learning facilities. He explained that the group’s mission is to provide platforms for students to showcase their talents and boost their confidence through academic competitions.
He called on government authorities to take bold and deliberate steps to revamp the education sector, particularly addressing the plight of over 20 million out-of-school children in Nigeria. He stressed that restoring the integrity of public education is crucial for national development.
The debate and quiz competition, he said, was organised in partnership with Professor Benjamin Voth, a professor of Rhetoric at Southern Methodist University and a board member and lead debate instructor at One Youth Global. Participants for the competition were drawn from schools across several states in Nigeria.
Winners of the debate and quiz segments each received a scholarship worth one million naira and a chance to travel to California, USA. Participating schools came from Lagos, Adamawa, Enugu, Imo, Rivers, and other states. In total, over 250 students from various secondary schools across Nigeria took part in the event.
At the Boot Camp segment of the programme, Director of the Spark Nation competition, Mr. Samson Amulu, explained that the initiative aims to promote critical thinking, public speaking, and leadership among secondary school students in Ebonyi State and beyond. He revealed plans to expand the initiative to reach more schools across the country.
Amulu shared insights from the seven-day camp, which began on June 15, and included visits to communities across the 13 local government areas of Ebonyi State. He expressed concern that many students are beginning to lose interest in education, with some adopting the popular phrase, “Education is a scam.”
Citing statistics from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Amulu noted that around 20 million Nigerian children are currently out of school. He emphasized the need for better incentives and remuneration for teachers to motivate them to deliver quality education. According to him, many teachers are unemployed graduates or underpaid, which has negatively affected the quality of instruction in schools.
He attributed the challenges in the education sector to poor government policies, a weak economy, and lack of proper investment in human capital development.
The debate competition was won by Akin Oluwa Olajolo, an SS1 student from Wellspring College, Lagos, who scored 85 points. He was closely followed by Michelle Emeka-Nwuke from CSMT, Abakaliki, who scored 82 points. Each of the top winners received one million naira in scholarship funding to study at any university of their choice in Nigeria.
