Partnership for Learning for All in Nigeria
KANO STATE EDUCATION RECOVERY CONFERENCE
Repositioning Education in Kano State:
Navigating the Path to Excellence
The Kano State Government, with the support of the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) in Nigeria and Arewa Consultative Forum, is set to convene an education recovery conference on 10th and 11th of July, 2024. The conference featuring thought leaders, political actors, diplomats, educators, private sector players, advocates and policymakers, will focus on addressing significant education sector challenges in Kano State.
The education conference has as its theme “Repositioning Education in Kano State: Navigating the Path to Excellence”. It is designed to address critical challenges on education access and equity, chart a reform pathway and foster partnerships in transforming education in the state. During the two-day event, stakeholders will work together to identify sustainable and scalable solutions that will reposition and improve the education sector in Kano State, ensuring sustainable access to quality education for all.
The education sector in Kano State, like many parts of Nigeria, faces critical issues that hinder its progress. Currently, there are over 9 million out-of-school children in Nigeria, and Kano State contributes significantly to this figure as the most populous northern state of Nigeria, hence, tackling challenges in Kano is essential to the ‘Education for Renewed Hope Agenda’.
In recent times, the Kano State Government has demonstrated willingness to tackle educational challenges head on. Earlier in June, the Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, declared a state of emergency in the education sector due to the significant decay in both educational quality and infrastructure.
The Kano aspiration is an ambitious roadmap to kickstart the journey to quality and accessible education in the state. Through the proposed conference, the government will be creating a platform for technical deliberations on education access, quality, and equity in the state. There will be keynote speeches, lead paper presentation, plenaries and breakout sessions, all carefully structured to address different areas of challenges, using an interactive and inclusive approach.
Conference Purpose:
To develop and implement strategic interventions that will reposition and improve the education sector in Kano State, ensuring sustainable access to quality education for all. At the basic education level will translate to sustainable improvement of access, completion, and learning outcomes (with emphasis on improving basic literacy, numeracy, and life skills) for all children.
Conference Objectives:
1. Facilitate technical deliberations on education access, quality, and equity with focus on Kano State: covering topical issues such as out-of-school Children; Almajiri school system and how the challenges it faces can be addressed, Quranic, and Tsangaya Education (IQTE); teacher professional development; girls’ education, female teacher shortages in rural areas, pivotal teacher training for girls to acquire minimum teacher qualification; foundational learning, language of instruction, accelerated learning; school safety/security; disaster risk assessment/management and education infrastructure in connection with climate-related challenges.
2. Serve as a platform for advocacy to enhance policy and practice on education service delivery: highlighting policy accomplishments and gaps; financing needs, options, and priorities; challenges and alternatives; and showcasing intervention initiatives with their evidence and cost – effectiveness and value for money. This includes establishing a realistic reform pathway/ framework with key performance indicators (KPIs).
3. Foster partnership and collaboration: enabling networking and collaboration in the spectrum of state and federal education officials, public private partnership (PPP), community platforms (SBMC, PTAs), donors, academics, implementation partners, civil society, and old pupils’ associations.
