The Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to addressing the plight of out-of-school children and other vulnerable young people in Nigeria, using the platform of the At-Risk-Children Program ARC-P.
Speaking in Kaduna, North-West Nigeria during the closing ceremony of a three-week capacity building programme for 649 ARC-P youth facilitators, drawn from the 23 Local Government Areas of Kaduna State, Special Adviser to the President on Social Investments, Maryam Uwais said the programme was critical for a secured and sustainable future for the underserved children and vulnerable youth in Nigeria.
Uwais, who is facilitator of the Federal Government initiative under the Office of the Vice President, says the just concluded three-weeks training programme is in line with ARC-P’s implementation strategy designed to empower the youth facilitators with the necessary knowledge, skills and the wherewithal that they need to effectively engage, empower and nurture the primary beneficiaries of the scheme.
She said each of the youth facilitators will be assigned a minimum of 50 vulnerable children whom they are expected to groom and mentor using the knowledge gained during the capacity building programme. While noting that the facilitators are expected to conduct basic monitoring and evaluation of activities with the assigned wards and give periodic reports to the implementation team, Uwais reminded the facilitators that they were expected to obtain parental and guardian consent for each of the primary beneficiaries, before proceeding with the training, mentoring and nurturing that they have been prepared for.
The presidential aide who underscored the importance of ARC-P as a critical human capital development program of the Federal Government, supplementing existing efforts of the State Governments, and supported by the private sector and development partners, as well as other critical stakeholders, tasked the graduates to stay focused on the objectives of ARC-P as they proceed to the field to carry out their primary assignments.
With the conclusion of the three-week exercise for Youth Facilitators, Kaduna has become the second State, after Gombe, to commence the implementation of the At-Risk Children Programme.
The youth facilitators trained and equipped by resource persons from various Federal and State Government, as well as developmental partners including Unicef, UNODC, UBEC, Legal Aid Council, NPHCDA, National Eye Centre, Rural Electrification Agency, Office of the SDGs, Resource and Support Hub, and more.
The numerous training sessions focused on ICT, Renewable Energy, Photography and Videography, Health and Nutrition, Leatherworks, Catering, and Building. Others include PoP, Tiling and Interlocks, Welding and Fabrication, Agriculture, as well as automobile maintenance training facilitated by PAN Nigeria.
Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe who was represented at the event, commended the Federal Government for introducing the ARC-P, saying the initiative is in line with the poverty reduction strategy of the Governor Nasir El-Rufai administration.
“Kaduna State under Mallam Nasir El-Rufai believes that only vibrant, skilled and knowledgeable cooperation can move Kaduna and, indeed, Nigeria forward. This is why this government has paid a lot of attention to human capital development. We are pursuing policies and programmes that will make Kaduna State residents physically and mentally healthier, and focused on providing free and compulsory basic education to all children. We are providing skills through technical and vocational education especially to our young ones”.
Kaduna State First Lady, Hadiza Isma El-Rufai and the Commissioner for Human Services and Social Development, Hafsat Mohammed Baba are both optimistic that ARC-P is well structured to drive systemic change and address the concerns of At-Risk-Children in the State, calling on the youth facilitators to take advantage of the training to ensure that they provide the needed mentorship, guidance and care for the children that will be assigned to them.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
