By Deborah Onyofufeke, ABUJA
A technology professional and human capital development advocate, Charles Obinna Eze, has bemoaned the number of out-of-school population in Nigeria.
The tech expert quoting a recent report by UNESCO disclosed that Nigeria’s out-of-school population which is at 20 million is a big threat to the country’s socioeconomic development.
Speaking at the launch of his empowerment foundation:
Charles Eze Development Foundation, CED, in Abuja, the entrepreneur explained that human and social capital development inspired him to start the foundation.
He noted that when access to basic education becomes unattainable, communities get exposed to various challenges, notable among which are child labour, crimes and exploitation.
He said “I have seen first-hand and know that some of us have witnessed the devastating effects of socio-capital infrastructure and its impact for not having access to education, and healthcare, and how it promotes child labour and exploitation, youth restiveness, and involvement in social vices.
“This experience inspired me to launch a mission toward solving these problems.
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“A recent report by UNESCO has shown there are approximately 20 million out-of-school children in Nigeria and this accounts for 20 percent of our entire population.
This is a big threat to every one of us here because when access to basic education is not possible, it opens up our communities to various challenges, crime, and exploitation”.
He explained that the foundation programmes are built around child education, health awareness, technology innovation, human rights advocacy and environmental sustainability.
He noted that these programmes are tailored towards helping to develop the youths in society.
He added that partnerships will be established with businesses at the micro level and urban cities to make sure that youths are equipped with skills after secondary school and even into the universities.
He noted that with this in place, graduates from the universities will be equipped to face the challenges that lie ahead.
Eze, who holds a Post Graduate Degree in Artificial intelligence and Machine Learning from the University of Texas, said the foundation was born out of the realisation of the passion he had since his teenage years for human and socio-capital development.
He added that a similar situation applies to students from low-income and middle-income families enrolled in elementary and secondary schools in Nigeria today.
Eze said his vision for the CED Foundation is to leverage it to empower the next generation of leaders through human and socio-economic development.
