Stakeholders in Kano State are urging the government to be gender-responsive in its education budget to close the gender disparity and enhance girls’ education.
They proposed committing five percent of the total education budget to girl-child education to boost access for girls in the state.
This call was made during a one-day sensitization event and dissemination of findings on the gender-responsive education budgeting baseline assessment in Kano State. The program was organized by the Bridge Connect Africa Initiative (BCAI) under the Bridging Access to Girls Education (BAGE) project, supported by the Malala Fund.
Lead consultant Mohammed Bello highlighted that there is currently no system framework guiding gender responsiveness in the state’s education budgeting. The assessment conducted by the African Centre for Innovative Research and Development for BCAI under the BAGE project revealed a gender disparity gap between men and women of 0.8 to 0.9. Bello noted that a recent annual school census report shows this disparity in favor of boys, a gap that must be closed to ensure equity in educational access for girls.
Bello called for the establishment of a gender education-responsive framework to provide a sustainable foundation. In his welcome address, BCAI director Mohammed Sani reiterated the organization’s commitment to enhancing access to girl-child education in the state. He stated that BCAI is dedicated to empowering girls, women, and young people in Nigeria and Africa.
