The Federal Government has moved to address the growing number of out-of-school-children in Nigeria with the At-Risk-Children Programme, ARC-P, as an interventionist scheme designed for the vulnerable children and youth across all states of the Federation, including the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
Speaking on Tuesday during the official flag-off of a three-week training programme for over 900 ARC-P youth facilitators in Maiduguri, Borno State, North-East Nigeria, Special Adviser to the President on Social Investments, Maryam Uwais who is also the National leader of the Programme, domiciled in the Office of the Vice President, said the initiative was geared towards addressing the cross-cutting concerns of children and vulnerable youth in Nigeria. The multi-dimensional approach covers education, health, digital and vocational skills, entrepreneurship, agriculture as well as sports and life skills.
Uwais who was represented by the Deputy Director, of Budget and Planning, Grace Akpabio, said the core objective of the three-week training programme for the Youth facilitators in Borno State, was to prepare them for the task of providing mentorship and guidance for the primary beneficiaries of the Programme.
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The training, according to the Presidential aide, is to enhance the knowledge and understanding of the youth facilitators in basic subject matters and life skills to be able to coach ARC-P primary beneficiaries with a view to supporting them to be reintegrated back into the communities
“This three-week training in Borno is an opportunity to familiarise the youths with ARC-P provide basic tools on mentoring and guidance, recognise the different skills of the trainees and areas of comparative advantage, standard training syllables as well serve as a feedback mechanism,” she said.
Uwais further said the youth facilitators have a huge role to play in achieving the objectives of the Programme which is being implemented in a holistic manner involving State Governments, Federal MDAs, development partners and the private sector.
“ARC-P’s coordination Strategy at the National level includes training of educated Youth who reside in the communities, across many spheres of endeavour, to be assigned the responsibility of training, mentoring and monitoring the out-of-school children in their vicinity after securing parental consent. The whole essence is to provide community support of mentorship and guidance to the primary beneficiaries of the Programme, in addition to monitoring them closely, to provide feedback on their progress and challenges towards curbing learning deprivations and child poverty”, Uwais added
Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum commended the Federal Government for introducing the ARC-P initiative, saying the programme and other social investment schemes currently going on at the national level are in line with his administration’s 25-Year Development Plan.
Represented by the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Zuwaira Gambo, Governor Zulum said Federal Government’s interventions such as ARC-P, were helping to address the plight of children, youth and women in armed conflict, especially in the North-East where Boko Haram and other terrorists groups have unleashed mayhem in the last 12 years.
Governor Zulum assured the ARC-P team of his administration’s continuous partnership, collaboration and support to enable the Programme to succeed while calling on the youth facilitators to put in their best in the discharge of their duties to ensure that the primary beneficiaries of ARC-P get all the support they need to live a better and productive life.
The three weeks training Programme which began on Monday is currently holding at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim College of Education, Maiduguri in Borno State.
Editor: Terverr Tyav
