No fewer than 40,000 adolescent girls in Kaduna State have benefited from a structured life skills education programme as Governor Uba Sani moves to institutionalise the initiative across public secondary schools in the state.
The state government said the programme was part of efforts to strengthen girl-child education and equip students with practical skills beyond academic learning.
A statement issued by the State Commissioner for Information, Ahmed Maiyaki, on Friday disclosed that the governor would soon transmit an Executive Bill to the Kaduna State House of Assembly to make life skills education a compulsory and permanent component of the secondary school curriculum.
According to the statement, the life skills programme is being implemented under the World Bank–supported Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment Project.
It added that the initiative had so far reached 40,536 girls and 1,864 boys across senior secondary schools, while 1,141 teachers had been trained as mentors to deliver the curriculum.
The Commissioner for Education, Prof. Abubakar Sani Sambo, disclosed this at a strategic workshop on the institutionalisation of life skills education held in Abuja.
Representing Governor Sani at the event, Sambo said the administration was committed to repositioning education to focus not only on academic excellence but also on emotional intelligence, resilience and leadership.
“Our goal is to deliberately build life skills that will help young people, especially girls, navigate real-life challenges and become responsible leaders in their communities”, the statement partly read.
The commissioner explained that the reform marked a departure from a traditional learning approach that prioritises rote thinking to a more holistic model that emphasises practical application and emotional development.
He noted that the life skills curriculum covers empowerment, health and nutrition, reproductive health, prevention of gender-based violence, climate change and social inclusion.
According to the Commissioner, early outcomes from the programme include improved self-confidence among students, reduced absenteeism and increased school enrolment.
The statement added that behavioural changes had also been recorded, including better interpersonal relationships, respect for diversity and improved empathy among learners.
The AGILE State Project Coordinator, Maryam Dangaji, confirmed that the programme had been implemented across all senior secondary schools in Kaduna State.
She said, “The wide coverage was designed to ensure that no girl was left behind in accessing life skills education critical to her personal and social development.
The Executive Director of the Centre for Girls’ Education, Dr Habiba Mohammed, described Kaduna’s approach as “a model for sustainable, girl-child-focused education reform in Nigeria.”
Reacting to the proposed legislation, the Chairman of the Kaduna State House of Assembly Committee on Education, Emmanuel Kantiok, said the lawmakers were “prepared to fast-track the bill.”
He assured stakeholders that once consultations were concluded, “the Assembly would support the passage of the bill to give life skills education a firm legal and budgetary backing in the state.”
