A non-governmental organization, De Light of Christ Rescue Home, has expressed its willingness to provide financial assistance to no less than 10,000 out-of-school children to return to school.

The foundation also revealed plans to build a facility that would provide free education at the kindergarten, primary and secondary levels.

The founder, Ms. Ebunoluwa Ajibare, made this known on Sunday, during the official launch of the De Light of Christ Rescue Home and its 40th birthday celebration in Lagos State.

Ajibare emphasized that the increase in children out of school is a global threat that must be addressed by non-governmental organizations.

He explained that De Light of Christ Rescue Home would provide fully funded scholarships covering all three major levels of education for the underprivileged.

He added that the foundation would also provide housing and distribute food to the less privileged across the country.

She said: “The inspiration for the Foundation came in 2015 on a Monday morning when I was doing my regular morning evangelism. One would expect the children to be at school on a Monday morning during a school session, but she noticed the opposite. Many children roamed the streets of the Igando area in Lagos state, where I lived at the time. I became inquisitive and was interested in why they were not at school. To my surprise, I found that most of the children had been kicked out of school for over a year because their parents couldn’t afford the school fees. The need to correct this error immediately arose in me and I was inspired to do something about it.

“During school hours, many underage children, who are supposed to be at school, are seen in traffic selling different products, from water sachets to soft drinks, while some are thrown into learning at a very young age. tender, according to the United Nations. UNESCO Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (2022), Nigeria has about 20.2 million children out of school. For context, around 244 million children and youth between the ages of 6 and 18 are out of school worldwide. This implies that Nigeria accounts for almost 10% of the world’s out-of-school children. This is a huge gap that needs the intervention of well meaning Nigerians to fill, hence the establishment of this foundation.

“Mainly, the foundation will focus on three key aspects of a child’s development which are quality education, provision of housing, food and demonstration of family love.

“The foundation has a plan to build an establishment for the levels of infant, primary and secondary education. The plan for this to happen is already underway, as we have acquired a tract of land solely for this purpose; this school, when completed, will be 100 percent free.

“The foundation is established to combat the widespread decline in the upbringing of young children in society. Children are the future of any society, and the strength of our community depends on how we educate our children.”