Mr. Michael Situ, Mayor of the London Borough of Southwark, has expressed his commitment to host members of Nigeria’s diaspora community in the UK to address the out-of-school children crisis in Nigeria.
Situ’s gesture is in support of the activities of the British charity, Ibironke Adeagbo (IA)-Foundation, which has been actively involved in Nigeria. IA-Foundation’s CEO, Ibironke Adeagbo, stated that Mayor Situ will host key figures, including captains of industry, politicians, philanthropists, delegates, and friends of IA-Foundation. The event aims to draw global attention to the educational challenges faced by Nigeria.
Adeagbo said that the event, which would be held early next year would be staged at the Southwark Civic Townhall at the London Bridge, overlooking the River Thames.
According to her, the purpose of the event is to showcase the work, impact and key findings of the foundation over the years and to attract the attention of the Nigerian diaspora community in the UK to make a difference back home.
Adeagbo said that the interaction would be geared toward mobilizing the international community toward building a shared vision and harnessing resources to combat the menace of out-of-school children in Nigeria.
She affirmed that members of the UK Parliament, UK councillors, politicians, philanthropists, delegates from corporate organisations and other notable individuals would also attend the event.
“The endeavour is to ensure that the international community plays a critical role in the development of a solid and functional educational system in Nigeria,’’ she said.
IA-Foundation which was established in 2019 by Adeagbo, a Nigerian born in England, has demonstrated an uncommon passion to tackle the out-of-school crisis in Nigeria.
In 2022, the UN agency, UNESCO reported that Africa’s most populous nation is having an army of out-of-school children, estimated at 20.2 million – the highest in the continent.
However, Adeagbo, who is a chartered accountant has been pushing relentlessly, using the foundation to draw international attention to the out-of-school crisis in Nigeria.
Last month, the foundation hosted a summit in Lagos that attracted prominent Nigerians and activists to discuss the out-of-school problem.
Also, the foundation is billed to host a fund-raising event in Lagos next March to enable the body to take more children out of the streets and return them to classrooms.
President Bola Tinubu has, however, assured Nigerians that his administration would pull Nigeria out of the woods and re-position the country on a glorious path in the education sector.
