On December 12, 2022, 100 out-of-school pupils selected from Yola and the environs graduated from the 7th cohort of the Feed and Learn program. The program was facilitated by the Global Center for Out-of-School children of the American University of Nigeria and supported by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board (ADSUBEB).
Under the scheme, 50 boys and girls from vulnerable segments of Yola whom local community leaders recommended were enrolled for preparatory classes in basic numeracy and literacy skills in October this year. Initiated in 2015 as the AUN Feed and Read program, UNICEF renamed it Feed and Learn to reflect the introduction of broader learning outcomes for enrolled pupils who receive one meal per day of class. Graduates from the AUN/UNICEF Feed and Learn program are blended into the formal education system after graduation.
The 7th cohort of the nationally acclaimed inclusion program for out-of-school kids kicked off in October with a facilitators' training at the AUN e-library and led by UNICEF and ADSUBEB officials. It focused on using Hausa and Fulfulde languages to teach the pupils by means of the Haske model curriculum.
Welcoming guests to the closing ceremony, the coordinator of the AUN Feed and Learn Program, Mr. Raymond Obindu, expressed appreciation to UNICEF for their sponsorship of the program and thanked ASUBEB, whose quality assurance teams constantly monitored the lesson delivery progress and strict compliance with the Haske model.
"I'd want to thank UNICEF in particular for providing us with the opportunity to use the Haske model in teaching these pupils. As you can see, there is a substantial improvement. We are pleased to have made significant progress, and we look forward to future collaboration with UNICEF on a bigger project so that we can fulfill our objective of educating these children".
"I'll like to thank everyone present for coming for the closure of the Feed and Learn program for the end of this year.
The Interim President of AUN, Professor Attahir Yusuf, represented by the Head of Atiku Center, Mr. Audu Liman, thanked everyone who lent support in achieving the aim and purposes of the program, particularly UNICEF, for funding this phase of the project.
"The Center for Global Education for Out-of-School Children is an initiative of a former President of AUN and strongly supported by our present President, Prof. Attahir Yusuf to train and educate the kids who are yet to join the formal education system. AUN being a development university has been implementing this program for the past seven years. Fortunately, UNICEF has come to partner with us with resources to achieve more”, Mr. Liman said.
A representative of UNICEF, Mr. Joel Jatum, thanked AUN for initiating the program. "We must thank you for starting this program; it was AUN's idea to teach out-of-school children. We only learned about it this year and want to support the effort to provide more children with good education, although UNICEF did not plan for it this year. We couldn't say no to this proposal because we have the mandate to cater to children's learning and education, and I'm glad to say that today, I am surprised to see that these children can speak and write in English," he said. Mr. Jatum assured AUN of additional project funding in January of next year.
Other dignitaries present at the closing ceremony include Salisu Iliyasu, representing the Executive Secretary, Adamawa State, representative of SUBEB Chair and head of Quality Assurance, Mr. Jika Abdulhameed, parents of the graduating pupils, and well-wishers.
Reported by John Abah