The Federal Government is targeting no fewer than 15 million children under its National school feeding programme across the country.
Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, disclosed this at a two-day stakeholders summit on Free and compulsory basic and secondary education in Kano on Tuesday.
He said the federal government was currently feeding 9.8 million children in 32 states of the federation.
Osinbajo said the initiative was part of the government’s effort to address the issue of out-of- school children as well as encourage parents to send their children to school.
The Vice President said the government was also working with state governments to raise the quality of teachers with a view to providing sound and quality education in the country.
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He said the initiative was in line with the present administration’s commitment to providing quality education to all Nigerians for the development of the country.
“On the assumption of the present administration under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, we made a commitment to invest heavily in the education sector, “he said.
He said the federal government would continue to support the state governments to address the problem of out-of-school children in the country.
“One in every five out-of-school children in the world come from Nigeria. So for country with our aspirations for development this is unacceptable, “he said.
Osinbajo, who commended Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano for the policy initiative, said the move would ensure the transformation of destiny of millions of children in the state.
“Kano being reputable as the most populous state will definitely trigger an educational revolution in the state and the country at large, “he said.
Earlier, the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, urged other states to emulate Kano State to promote societal change, National growth and economic development in the country.
Adamu said the implementation of free education would not only facilitate good governance but would ensure meaningful development in the country.
He said the federal government would support Kano state government in its effort to end the problem of out-of-school children in the state.
The summit which has its theme:Fundamentals of Free and Compulsory Education was attended by representatives of development partners, ambassadors of France, United Arab Emirate and Saudi Arabia among others.
