Former Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, has called for urgent societal and government intervention to address the growing neglect of the boy child in Nigeria, warning that the country’s future could be at risk if millions of young boys remain abandoned and uneducated.

Aregbesola made the call in Abuja during the maiden edition of the AfriCultural Fashion Show and Awards organised by Global Awareness for Development Initiatives.

Speaking on the theme of empowering the African boy child, the former minister said that while advocacy for the girl child remains important, the plight of boys who face immense societal expectations without adequate support must not be ignored.

According to him, society often expects boys to grow into strong and responsible men while denying them the emotional and economic support necessary for healthy development.

“The boy child floats and sinks in a society that has largely failed him but expects him to be a good citizen, a patriot and a nationalist,” Aregbesola said.

He lamented that many boys, particularly those from poor families, are forced to shoulder responsibilities beyond their age, often abandoning education to support their households.

The former governor of Osun State pointed to the increasing number of out of school children across Nigeria, describing the situation as a serious threat to the country’s long-term stability.

He observed  that millions of boys are seen on the streets hawking goods, begging for alms, or cleaning car windshields in traffic in order to survive.
The more tragic part for all of  this is that here in Nigeria, there are about twenty million of those kids out of school roaming our villages, towns and cities.”

He warned that a society with a large population of uneducated and neglected youths risks producing adults who may turn to crime, drugs, or migration abroad as an escape from hardship.

To address the challenge, Aregbesola urged citizens to hold government accountable for providing free and quality education for all children, describing education as a fundamental social investment.

He advocated for free education from the basic level to pre-degree stages and called for affordable university education for the average Nigerian.

Reflecting on his tenure as governor of Osun State, Aregbesola said his administration implemented policies aimed at improving access to education and empowering young people.

These initiatives included free schooling, provision of meals for about 150,000 elementary school pupils, distribution of school uniforms, and the construction of large modern school facilities capable of accommodating thousands of students.
He also referenced youth empowerment programmes such as the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O-YES), which provided employment opportunities for unemployed youths.

Aregbesola further highlighted character-building programmes in schools, including clubs designed to promote discipline, courage, and integrity among students.

In his concluding remarks, he warned Nigeria’s political and economic elites that they cannot insulate themselves from the consequences of societal neglect.

“If the boy child in Nigeria has no future worthy to live in, no other citizen can hope for a better future,” he said.

He urged Nigerians to work collectively toward building a society founded on social justice and humanism, stressing that the future of both boys and girls must be secured to guarantee national development.