UN Report: PTP Seeks Improved Scholarships For Out-of-School Children

Following the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) report stating that Nigeria has the most out-of-school population in the world, a not-for-profit organisation, Path To Possibilities (PTP), is targeting provision of scholarships and integrative learning services to lift more children from the out-of-school bracket.

The Founder, Path to Possibilities, Ms. Titilolami Bello, shared the vision during an interview with journalists in Lagos recently.

Bello stated that the continuous rise in out-of-school population constitutes a source of worry for the future of the nation, hence PTP initiative to stem the tide.

She explained that over the last 15 years of Path to Possibilities’ existence, it has facilitated the scholarship of 16 children through secondary school.

As part of plans to intensify efforts in bridging the existing out-of-school population gaps, PTP is relaunching its Resource Center which offers integrative learning services to help young people have access to a library, digital resources and trainings for free.

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She explained that exposure to integrative learning resources will help beneficiaries lead competitive lives in the workplace.

She said: “What is driving the work of the Path to Possibilities’ charity now is the need. Nigeria has the most children out of school in the world. Some children are not in school because their parents can’t afford it.

“At Path to Possibilities, we provide scholarship funds to children. They seat for our assessment and exams at the end of their primary school and we take them through the six years of their secondary school in Nigeria; paying for all their fees, paying for accommodation where they are at boarding schools and such like.

“So far, we have had 16 children pass through our scholarship funds and the biggest impact we’ve had is establishing this Resource Center in 2017.

“Since then, we have had over 10 thousand visitors, sometimes, in the period of four to five months.

“Children come in here to use our computer center and library for free and we also run training for the young people on a whole host of subjects like how to prepare for interviews, CV writing workshop and other vocation workshops.”

Also, speaking at the meeting, a Director on the Board of Path to Possibilities, Ms. Funmi Akanmu, noted that at the heart of the brain drain Nigeria, which is currently experiencing, was an inadequate education system.

Akanmu, therefore, called on the government and school institutions to support initiatives which promote best learning experiences for children and encourage inclusivity for children with special needs.

“As a charity, we want to pass a message to the government on the importance of education. We expect the government, the stakeholders, the people of Nigeria to put in the work that will take our educational system to the next level.

“Also, one area our education system is lacking is in the resources, the information, the experience, the expertise to allow special children to learn and thrive and one of our focus areas at PTP is training teachers in this environment on how they can deal with learning deficits,” Akanmu stated.