Address Out-Of-School Children Or Train Future Terrorists, Armed Robbers - Obasanjo

Former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, says that if Nigeria doesn't address the issue of the growing number of out-of-school children "they will be the terrorists, armed robbers, and kidnappers of the future."

This prediction by the former president was shared on the Monday bulletin of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), where he also questioned the quality of education in the country.

Obasanjo questioned if the number of schools emerging from different parts of the country are delivering "quality education", as the country should be concerned about the "products" that these institutions are churning out.

He said, “If we don’t take care of these 14 million out-of-school children in the next 10 years or so, they will be the terrorists, armed robbers, and kidnappers of the future.

“It should be about whether they’re doing what they should be doing, whether they meet the needs of the industry where they are situated, or whether they are delivering quality education

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“We should be preoccupied with what product is coming out and not about the number or the size. America has varsities with multi-campuses where student populations number in the thousands.

“I used to be a member of the Board of Trustees of Wilberforce University with a total population of 1,500, a small university but one which is making meaningful and impactful contributions.

“We should build on what we have now, improve on them. A population of over 200 million people having 170 or more universities is not too many for me as what matters are content and quality.

“And the ability to turn out appropriate products for market and industry. If that is achieved, then universities could be said to be doing what they should be doing, and we should hail them for it.”