By Many believe that marriage gives no room for learning or even that marriage puts an end to education. Nigeria has high ranked the importance of education by creating room for married women to acquire knowledge and skills.
Minister of Women Affairs, Aisha Alhassan stated that the Federal Government is on the line to establish special schools for women who abandoned school to get married and also to the ones who feel they couldn’t further their education due to marriage.
The minister said:
“All women that married at early age will have the opportunity to continue with their education from their husbands houses. The schools will be in two categories so as to avoid problems emanating from the establishment of the schools.”
“The first category is for those who started their schooling but due to one reason or the other dropped out. The other category is for the Adult Literacy classes that will be established in all local governments to assist women attain certain literacy level.” She added.
“In the Adult literacy schools, the women will also be empowered with skills training during their lessons. The women will be trained how to make soap, local soft drink, candle, pomade, cake, local hair dressing, tailoring and other small businesses.” The minister told news reporters.
In addition, Alhassan urged the religious and traditional leaders to continue supporting the ongoing efforts to boost the enrolment of the girl-child into schools nationwide. This will in return change the lives of the women making them contribute significantly to the growth and development of the country.
Speaking with a Nigerian educationist, she said:
“Every Nigerian has a right to education. The issue of girls dropping out from school and also stopping school because of marriage is a problem that ought to have been stopped for long. I appreciate the effort of the present minister of women affairs who has seen education from a very productive perspective. Education is our right, we are expected to exercise it no matter the situation.”
The minister further stated that the education of female children is very important as such the leaders should encourage parents to send them to school. Also, she pleaded with the husbands of the women to encourage them in furthering their education in marriage.
The establishment of special schools for married women in Nigeria will go a long way to encourage women further their education. It will also help them to discover their potentials, increase their level of usefulness in the society and also assist their family financially and psychologically.