The Founder and Executive Director of Brain Builder Youth Development Initiative, Olasupo Abideen joined world leaders at the launching of the Global Campaign for Education’s campaign on Education in Emergency.
Olasupo has continually championed conversations and active engagement on the promotion of educational policies in developing countries, particularly in his home country, Nigeria.
Bringing to the discussion his wealth of experience working on the development of youth capacity in Africa for over a decade, Abideen who is also an entrepreneur, positioning his communities for development, spoke alongside Yasmine Sherif, the Director of Education Cannot Wait, Pr. Abdoul Aziz Yaouba, the Secretary General of the National Commission of UNESCO of the Republic of Cameroon, Stefania Giannini, the Assistant Director-General for Education, UNESCO, and Charles North, the Acting CEO of Global Partnership for Education.
While speaking at the event, Olasupo focused on the essence of the campaign to ensure educational equality in the emergency regions, how the lack of attention to this need have continually affect the children and the effect of education on the youths and children living in the disaster region. He also paid critical attention to the points on what governments and the international community can do to enhance education in such regions.
Addressing the congregation of world leaders in the education industry, Olasupo Abideen stated that “Covid-19 has exacerbated the negative trends and provoke worldwide education crisis”, with the vulnerable population direly affected by the consequences of the pandemic.
He said “Nigeria accounts for more than one in five out-of-school anywhere in the world” and “although primary education is officially free and compulsory, only 67% of eligible children take up a place in primary school”. He explained that the chance of a child returning to school if he/she ever misses school for some days is very low. This harsh situation has further been worsen by the outbreak of the pandemic.
Talking about the input of the younger generation in the fight to end educational inequalities, Abideen said that the youths have the competence and capacity to lead the change. He said that they should collaborate and make efforts to enlighten people around them. And also participate in governance.
While addressing the issue of solutions to be made by the international community and the governments, Olasupo said that the use of technology to enhance teaching and learning should be heavily invested in. He positioned that more funds should be disbursed to enhance the delivery of education, especially in the regions where crisis exists. He stated that “youth led solutions targeted at education should be enhanced”.
Olasupo stated that in the course of the works to ensure educational equality government and the international community should make data informed decisions, and relate with the communities affected for better understanding of the problems.
He concluded by calling on other nationals to emulate the development research and project centre on piloting the CSO Safe School Movement which revolutionising and democratising policies that will enhance safe and protected schools in nurturing learning environments
