Over 40 million safety kits were launched on Thursday to school children in Nigeria by the the Federal Government.
The Ministry of Education disclosed this at the lauch of a programme tagged “Children Accident Prevention Initiative” in collaboration with the National Union of Road Transport Workers on Thursday.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Sonny Echono, said statistics revealed there was an increase in the number of school children involved in road-related accidents without any improvement in preventive measures especially the availability of first aid facilities to cater for the victims.
Echono said, “Kitting school children with reflective jackets to ensure visibility is very important.
“Manning the exit and entrance roads with road guards, the provision of road signages, modern zebra crossings, road infrastructures and training of teachers for increased uptake of knowledge therein are capital intensive.
“There is a need for extensive collaborations for the successful implementation of this laudable scheme. The government’s effort to ensure quality education for all should be complemented by endeavors to safeguard lives as parents strive towards achieving their wards academic potentials.”
The Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, said the ministry was committed to creating an inclusive and safe academic environment for all learners.
He said, “We implore all interest groups, including local and international donors, to support this programme as a humanitarian act.
“The milestone in this launch is the free kitting of 40 million children with reflective jackets and arm bands in the first phase
“This is quite commendable. With the jackets, the learners are very conspicuous to road users and easily identified for security purposes.