The Gombe State Government has vowed to prosecute parents and guardians who fail to enroll their children in school, warning that defaulters risk jail terms under existing education laws.
Chairman of the Gombe State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Babaji Babadidi, issued the warning on Monday during the inauguration of the 2025/2026 school enrollment campaign at Amada, Akko Local Government Area.
Babadidi explained that the measure was backed by Section 19(2) of the SUBEB Amendment Law 2021, which prescribes fines or imprisonment for parents who deny children access to education.
“Every parent should ensure that their child or ward attends and completes primary, junior, and senior secondary education.
“Any parent who contravenes the law commits an offence and is liable, upon conviction, to pay a fine or serve a one-month prison sentence. Subsequent convictions also attract a substantial fine or imprisonment for a term of two months,” he said.
The SUBEB boss disclosed that the state had earlier adopted a “carrot approach” by providing free education and learning materials but would not hesitate to apply the “stick” if enrollment targets were not met.
“If we fail to meet our target of enrolling 400,000 pupils into primary schools this session, we will enforce the law,” he warned.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Aishatu Maigari, lamented that Gombe still has over 700,000 out-of-school children, noting that the Northeast accounts for 15 per cent of Nigeria’s estimated 18.2 million out-of-school children.
“We cannot sit and fold our arms while our children remain out of school. Every child must be enrolled, receive quality education, and acquire a skill. An educated person can become an employer of labour through entrepreneurship and technical training,” she said.
She added that the state government has invested heavily in education by providing exercise books, bags, and other materials, urging parents to reciprocate by sending their children to school.
The Chief of UNICEF Field Office, Bauchi, Dr. Nuzhat Rafique, described the number of out-of-school children in Gombe as “alarming” and urged stakeholders to rally behind the government’s campaign.
“Every child has the right to be in school, to receive quality education, and to grow into a productive citizen of society,” Rafique said.
On his part, the Emir of Gona, Alhaji Umar Abdulsalam, pledged traditional leaders’ support in mobilising parents to comply with the campaign.
Highlights of the campaign included the symbolic enrollment of school-age children into primary and post-basic classes.
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