The Defence and Police Officers’ Wives Association (DEPOWA), on Tuesday, laid a foundation for the establishment of its college in Abuja.
Mrs Oghogho Musa, President, DEPOWA and Wife of the Chief of Defence Staff, said the decision to establish the college was to help bring a dream to reality.
Musa also said it was geared towards contributing to the educational development in the country, as well as building a future for children in the country.
According to her, DEPOWA has over the years been involved in many humanitarian services including human development skills, training, personal development seminars, health and fitness events, scholarship and free medical/awareness checks.
She added that the main beneficiaries of its initiative had been the widows and orphans of deceased military and police personnel.
”Additionally, DEPOWA provides formal education for school-age children and women of pertinent and older families through the school located at Mogadishu Cantonment here in Abuja.
”However, the school premises is considerably constrained for holistic education and hence the need for the building of a boarding college to facilitate the much-needed expansion of its educational facilities.
”It is also to actualise the vision of providing an all-inclusive education for children and women of pertinent and other intending subscribers,” she said.
She noted that UNESCO’s latest statistics showed that with approximately 20 million out-of-school children, Nigeria had one of the highest number of children excluded from education globally.
”Having a low net enrollment rate of 64.6 per cent in primary education and also a pupil-teacher ratio of 37.65 per cent, this demonstrates that classrooms are over-projected, making them challenging for teachers to provide individualised attention.
”As DEPOWA members, we have resolved to introduce a positive change in this regard by constructing the DEPOWA college to further provide a supportive and a nurturing environment for students to develop”, she said.
The DEPOWA President said that the association was determined to use education to empower children and young people to become active participants in society, equipped with the values and skills necessary to create a better future.
She added that the project was a direct intervention in support of the non-kinetic operations of the defence and services headquarters.
According to her, the proposed college has a significant cost of N10 billion on an 8,000 square meters of land here in Asokoro, Abuja.
”It is gratifying to say that architectural and engineering designs for the college are completed and ready, while original equipment manufacturers have been contacted for the relevant equipment.
”By the commencement of academic activities, the college will have facilities such as modern classrooms equipped with interactive boards, sports and recreational facilities.
”It will also have well-stocked libraries with ICT capabilities, practice rooms for trade projects, and vocational skills such as photography, videography, among other facilities that may be necessary for functional learning.
”All these will set high educational standards as well as contributing to the overall improvement of education in our country.
”It will further demonstrate government’s commitment to education and willingness to invest in the future of Nigerian children,” she added.
Mrs Eniola Ekubi, Head of DEPOWA Education Committee, said the decision to establish the school was not because there were no schools but because of the need to provide a functional education for children
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