Kaduna Partners Foundation To Return 187,000 Out-Of-School Children To Classrooms

The Kaduna State Government has partnered with the Street to Scholars Foundation to return an estimated 187,000 out-of-school children to classrooms within one year.

The Commissioner for Finance, Ibrahim Tanko Mohammed, disclosed this at the official flag-off of the foundation’s programme in Kaduna, aimed at helping vulnerable children access education and acquire skills for self-reliance.

Mohammed said the state government was making efforts to ensure that children excluded from formal education returned to school as soon as possible.

“Kaduna State currently has 187,000 children out of school, and the governor is doing everything possible to return them to the classroom as soon as possible,” he said.

“In the next one year, we want to see zero out-of-school children,” the commissioner added.

The founder of the Street to Scholars Foundation, Sara Adeniyi, said the initiative was inspired by her encounter with street-connected children in Kaduna in 2008, when she first visited the state.

Adeniyi, who is based in the United Kingdom, said the experience prompted her to establish the foundation to help vulnerable children return to school and acquire skills that would enable them to become self-reliant.

She said the foundation planned to support about 135 children in its first year, targeting beneficiaries aged between five and 24 years.

According to her, the programme would cover primary and secondary education, as well as further education and skills acquisition for young people.

“Once they enter into our database, they will not leave until they get a skill, and that will be at the age of 24,” she said.

Adeniyi added that the foundation would also work to reconnect the children with their families, where appropriate, while providing sustained educational and skills-development support.

She explained that Kaduna was selected for the pilot phase because it was where she first encountered street-connected children and conceived the idea behind the foundation.

The founder stressed that government collaboration was essential to the success of the initiative, noting that the organisation was registered in both the United Kingdom and Nigeria.

Also speaking, the Commissioner for Planning and Budget, Mukhtar Ahmed Monrovia, said the partnership reflected the state government’s commitment to inclusive development and the protection of vulnerable children.

Monrovia said the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the state government and the foundation on September 8, 2026, provided a framework for collaboration to support street-connected and out-of-school children.

He identified poverty, inadequate support systems and limited access to educational opportunities as some of the barriers preventing vulnerable children from accessing education.

The commissioner called for effective coordination among government ministries, development partners, civil society organisations, traditional rulers and communities.

He also stressed the need for proper needs assessments to ensure that available resources reached the children and schools requiring the greatest support.