Gova Educare provides shoes and backpacks to 50,000 out-of-school children

Gova Educare Foundation, an NGO, began donating shoes and bags to 50, 000 out-of-school students across the country on Saturday to encourage them to return to school.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the foundation made the announcement on Saturday at an event in Lagos.

Gova organized the program, which drew about 100 students, in collaboration with the Association for Formidable Educational Development (AFED) and the Amuwo Odofin Local Government.

The event’s theme was “Educate to Elevate the Nigerian Child.”

Mr Valentine Ikenna, the NGO’s founder, stated that the event’s goal was to equip 50,000 underprivileged children and keep them in school.

He went on to say that the donation was intended for public and low-income schools.

“We want to equip low-cost schools and underprivileged children in order to keep them in school.”

“In Nigeria, there are a lot of kids who aren’t in school.” As a result, we want to eradicate poverty while also donating products such as school shoes and bags.

“These shoes and bags will be distributed throughout the country, and our goal is to outfit 50,000 children,” he said.

Mrs Flora Mbeledeogu, the Foundation’s Director of Projects and Partnerships, bemoaned the high rate of out-of-school children following the COVID -19 lockdown.

“According to a UNICEF 2018 survey, the population of out-of-school children in Nigeria has increased from 10.5 million to 13.2 million, making it the highest in the world.”

“There is a high demand for learning opportunities, which is resulting in increased enrollment.” “Everyone should be concerned about the decadence in the educational sector,” she said.

Mbeledeogu called for public-private partnerships to develop solutions, initiatives, and interventions to help close the education gap.

Mr. Orji Kanu, President of AFED, also urged the private sector to help ensure that many children return to school.

Kanu went on to say that having millions of out-of-school children in the country posed a potential threat to the country’s security and development.