The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has built the capacity of 25 education officers on the integration of the Family Life HIV Education (FLHE) into the Education Management Information System (EMIS).

The Minister of State for Education, Mr Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba disclosed this during  the Certificate Presentation Ceremony for participants of UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) in Abuja on Wednesday.

Nwajiuba, represented by the ministry’s Director, Research, Planning and Development, Dr Ogochukwu Ufoegbune, commended UNESCO’s gesture, stressing that the training was necessary for monitoring and evaluating the delivery of comprehensive FLHE.

He also said that it would further ensure that quantitative methods in monitoring and evaluating the delivery of comprehensive FLHE in school curriculum was well captured at all levels of education.

Nwajiuba added that the training would also help to support the national policy on gender in education through its integration into the Education Information Management System (EMIS).

“This programme is an integral part of the UNESCO 03 agenda which aims to support adolescents and young people in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to realise positive health, education, and gender equality outcome.

” This will help through a sustained reduction in new HIV infections, early and unintended pregnancy, gender-based violence and child marriage.

” At the end of 2015, an estimated number of 3,037,363 people were living with HIV in Nigeria, including 238,504 children aged 0-14 years and 1,639,593 women aged 15 years and above.

“Statistics reveal that 38% of females and 13% of males between 15-19 years are already in their first union before reaching the exact age of 15 years; and that young people (35% females and 27% males) aged 15-24 years justify domestic abuse for at least one specific reason.

” Family Life HIV Education (FLHE) is therefore a curriculum-based process of teaching and learning about the cognitive, emotional, physical and social aspects of human living.

” It aims to equip children and young people with knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that will empower them to realise their health, well-being and dignity,” he said.

He added that the training would improve skills in data analysis, interpretation and reporting on the delivery of comprehensive FLHE.

Also, Mrs Regine Priso, Programme Specialist for Education,  UNESCO Abuja Office, said that the training was aimed at improving skills in data analysis, interpretation and reporting on the delivery of FLHE.

Priso said that the education sector had conducted 2018-2019 and 2020-2021 annual school census adding that it was in the process of harmonising the data including that of FLHE.

She said that the training which spanned from April 27 to Nov. 16, 2021, was to provide technical assistance to countries to integrate health and gender indicators into EMIS.

According to her, this indicator alone supported the monitoring of our national policy on safety, security and violence-free schools for children and the national policy on gender in education.

” Through the advocacy of the UNESCO Our Right, Our Lives, Our Future (O3) project and the efforts of the NEMIS and statistics at the second National Council on EMIS, approval was given for the integration of HIV global core indicators in the annual school census tools.

” Four indicators such as GC2 on Education institutions: rules and guidelines, GC3 on life skills family life HIV education, address SDG4.7.2, GC4 on orientation process for parents or guardians and GC5: teacher training and teaching.

” All have been successfully integrated into annual school census tools. In 2019, the final approval for the operationalisation of the tools was given by the third national EMIS council in Benue State,” she said.

She called on the ministry of education and other partners to support the cascade of the capacity building efforts to state EMIS officers to promote holistic system strengthening for data collection in the education sector.

Mr Lateef Olagunju, National Commission for UNESCO (NATCOM-UNESCO) said that the training was apt as it would assist in making informed policy decision within the education sector while also charging beneficiaries to bring to bear the knowledge in their respective fields.

Responding, the National Programme Officer for Education, UNESCO Abuja Office, Mrs Ngozi Amanze, said that the training had been able to identify gaps around rules and regulations in schools.

Amanze said that from the data collected, only 43% of schools had rules and guidelines, adding that that they were working to support schools who do not have.