The City Boys Movement has engaged the Minister of State for Education, Prof Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, on key education reforms being implemented by the administration of President Bola Tinubu.
The engagement was led by the movement’s North-West Zonal Coordinator, Contact and Mobilisation, Yusuf Gidado, during a high-level strategic meeting with the minister, where issues affecting students, families and underserved communities were discussed.
According to a statement issued after the meeting, discussions focused on improving access to tertiary education funding, strengthening basic education and expanding technical and vocational skills development for young Nigerians.
A major area of focus was the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), with Gidado and the minister discussing efforts to implement and expand the scheme to reduce financial barriers confronting students seeking higher education.
The meeting also considered measures to promote girl-child education and inclusion, particularly through targeted educational programmes and skills acquisition pathways for out-of-school girls and other marginalised young people across the North-West.
Participants further discussed curriculum and basic education reforms, including improvements in foundational learning, vocational skills acquisition and community-level educational outreach aimed at bringing educational opportunities closer to underserved communities.
Gidado said the engagement was part of efforts by the movement to obtain first-hand information on government initiatives and communicate such opportunities effectively to communities at the grassroots.
‘Effective grassroots engagement requires us to listen, learn, and directly connect our communities with verifiable government initiatives,’ he said, adding that the movement would continue to promote awareness of federal government education programmes across the North-West, with a commitment to translating national policy into measurable community awareness and grassroots development.