By Aisha Gambo, Kaduna
The Malala Fund has called on the Kaduna State Government to strengthen re-entry policies that will enable married girls and adolescent mothers to return to school and contribute meaningfully to society.
Ms. Nabila Aguele, Chief Executive of the Malala Fund in Nigeria, made the appeal during a visit to the Centre for Girls’ Education (CGE) in Zaria, Kaduna State.
She explained that the visit followed the fund’s first-ever global board meeting held in Nigeria and was aimed at engaging directly with grassroots partners.
“When you are partnering with organisations and advocating for girls’ education, you must be on the ground to see and experience the safe spaces, talk to the girls, their mentors, and their teachers,” Aguele said.
She added that the team met adolescent mothers in safe spaces who had faced challenges ranging from child marriage to gender-based violence, yet remained hopeful of returning to school. “Policies must guarantee that hope,” she emphasized.
Aguele noted that the Malala Fund, which has operated in Nigeria for a decade, supports 29 local organisations including the CGE.
She pointed out that Nigeria has over 22 million girls married before the age of 18, the highest figure in West and Central Africa, with many of them already mothers.
She warned that the widening education gap has long-term consequences for national development, stressing that children of unschooled mothers are less likely to attend school themselves.
“Education delays early marriage, improves health outcomes, boosts GDP and creates better choices for families. If we ignore these girls, we risk Nigeria’s development future,” she said.
Aguele further disclosed that the Malala Fund is working to promote gender-responsive budgeting in the education sector, insisting that policymaking must reflect the voices and realities of girls in their communities.
On her part, the Executive Director of CGE, Habiba Mohammed, said the organisation had impacted more than 200,000 girls in Kaduna through its safe space programme since 2016.
She explained that the initiative equips girls with life skills, vocational training, reproductive health education, nutrition, climate change awareness, and guidance on addressing gender-based violence.
The programme also supports married adolescent girls by engaging their husbands, parents, religious leaders, and community stakeholders to facilitate their return to school.
“We want every girl, including married adolescents, to have lifelong learning so that even after 12 years of schooling, they continue to grow,” she said.
During the visit, some beneficiaries commended CGE and the Malala Fund, noting that they had become more self-aware and self-reliant.
One of them, Maimuna Muhammad, a married adolescent, said joining the programme helped her recognize gender-based violence and learn how to respond to it. “I now know how to take care of myself and my baby,” she added.
The delegation was led by Malala Fund co-founder, Mr. Ziauddin Yousafzai, alongside Ms. Aguele, board members, and international colleagues, who interacted with safe space mentors and girls at Bizara and Dambo communities in Zaria.
