As part of its efforts to reduce the number of out-of-school children, the National Association of Seadogs, also known as the Pyrates Confraternity, Ash Montana Deck, Abeokuta, has distributed educational materials to primary and secondary school students in Ajura community and its environs in Obafemi-Owode Local Council of Ogun State.

The beneficiaries of the educational materials, which included school bags, notebooks, pens, pencils, erasers, and water bottles, were learners from St. John Anglican Primary School, Ajura; Orile-Igbore Grammar School, Ajura; and Ilupeju Community Primary School, Ita-Ijaiye in Ajura and 13 other neighbouring communities.

Speaking at the event yesterday, the Capoon, Ash Montana Deck, Eromosele Okoghe, said the intervention, implemented in partnership with Atlantis, Aftashok, Grundziro and Hispaniola Decks, was a community-based Back-to-School project aimed at supporting vulnerable children aged 6 to 12 in rural communities.

He spoke on the theme: “Forging the Future: A Collective Mandate to Eradicate Educational Exclusion”.

Okoghe said the distribution of the educational materials would help ease the financial burden of back-to-school preparations on parents and guardians as they prepare their children for the new academic session amid rising costs of essential school supplies such as notebooks and school bags occasioned by economic hardship.

He said that when children lack basic educational materials, they are more likely to drop out of school, contribute to the growing number of out-of-school children, remain in the classroom without the necessary learning resources, or resort to street hawking and thuggery.

The Capoon stressed that the consequences of such educational deprivation extend beyond the affected child, with the entire community ultimately bearing the cost, noting that the burden of basic education should not rest on the government alone, but a collectively efforts to achieve regular school attendance for the children and champions lifelong literacy.

He added that, in due course, the association would explore ways to address the transportation challenges faced by students in rural schools especially the brilliant ones who travel long distances on foot to attend classes, and provide them with transportation support to prevent them from becoming discouraged and eventually dropping out of school.

Okoghe, however, urged parents and guardians to do everything possible to keep their children in school, while calling on community leaders to encourage and support them in taking their education seriously as well as charging the students to make judicious use of the educational materials, describing education as a powerful tool for overcoming poverty.

“We see families crushed by financial pressure, where the mere cost of a school bag, a uniform, or a notebook becomes an insurmountable barrier to learning. When a child lacks these fundamental tools, they either drop out entirely or remain in a classroom fundamentally unequipped to learn.”

“This is not just an unfortunate reality; it is entirely unacceptable. When, we deny a child access to basic education, we do not just fail that individual—we cripple the community and sabotage our
national progress,,” he added.
Also speaking, the Zonal Education Officer, Obafemi-Owode Local Council, Mr. Kareem Adegbola, who was represented by Mrs. Ebunoluwa Aranmolate, urged the students to make proper use of the educational materials provided and ensure that their parents or guardians do not divert them for other purposes.

Earlier, the Olu of Ajuraland, Oba Kassim Adebukola, thanked the association for the initiative and appealed to the Capoon to sustain and replicate the programme in the community and urged the children to make good use of the educational materials provided and remain committed to their academic pursuits.