The Nasarawa State Government has intensified its campaign against parental negligence in basic education, declaring that parents who keep their children at home instead of sending them to school will face prosecution under existing laws.
According to the government, the era of treating basic education as optional is over, stressing that the state can no longer tolerate avoidable obstacles that undermine its vision for an educated population and a skilled future workforce.
The decision reflects a renewed commitment to safeguard children’s rights and address the rising number of out-of-school pupils. The government noted that every child withheld from school represents a setback for the state’s development agenda and a violation of legal and moral obligations owed to the younger generation.
The announcement was made in Lafia by the Chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Kassim Kassim, who briefed journalists on the government’s strategy to enforce the Child Rights Protection Law.
According to him, local authorities will work closely with community leaders, traditional rulers, and relevant agencies to ensure parental compliance while also safeguarding pupils and school infrastructure.
“Education is the foundation of progress, and no society can thrive when its children are denied access to basic learning,” Kassim said.
He confirmed that at least 1,900 qualified teachers previously assigned to administrative duties across Local Government Education Authorities have been sent back to the classroom to strengthen public schools, while an additional 1,000 teachers are expected to be redeployed soon.
The SUBEB Chairman praised Governor Abdullahi Sule for supplying more than 30,000 classroom furniture sets to schools across the three senatorial zones, describing the investment as a major boost to the learning environment and an incentive for rural enrollment.
Furthermore, Kassim revealed that a result-based monitoring system is being applied across the state to prevent vandalism, discourage substandard construction, and ensure public schools meet required standards.
He maintained that the combination of enforcement, infrastructure improvement, and teacher deployment would help reposition basic education and significantly reduce the out-of-school population.
