VP’s wife harps on ample investment in girls’ education

Wife of the Vice President, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, has stressed the need for adequate investment in girls’ education to help tackle challenges in society.

Mrs. Osinbajo stated this in her address at the two-day MALLPAI Foundation 2021 Literacy Day with the theme: ‘Promoting Literacy for Better Education in Nigeria’ in Abuja, at the weekend.

At the occasion, the wife of Kebbi State Governor, Aisha Bagudu, who is also founder and initiator of Mass Literacy for Less Privileged and Almajiri Initiative (MALLPAI), said adequate investment in the education of children would keep them away from crime.

Decrying a situation where girls appear to lag behind the boys, Osinbajo’s wife said more needed to be done to bridge the gap in education between boys and girls.

She said: “When a girl is educated, she can read and write, she is aware of the law, and knows love. When a girl is educated, she is aware of her potential; she can read about Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of the World Trade Organisation.”

An educated girl sitting on a chair in Kebbi or Kano, in Osogbo or Oshodi, in Awka or Uyo, understands norms and expands her mind.

“Imagine if Stella Adedavor, a medical doctor, and Nana Asamoah, a poet, were never educated.”

Mrs. Osinbajo lauded MALLPAI Foundation’s efforts to provide meaningful life to the girl to achieve her desired goals, urging that more be done to ensure education for the girl.

Corroborating her, Mrs. Bagudu explained that when MALLPAI started with Almajirai, there were challenges.

“People do not see such children; they just see a nuisance. But we see the child, not the nuisance. We do not see through such children, we see them as human beings. Some of them have started working. Some have come back to work with MALLPAI Foundation,” she added.