SURE FOR YOU rescue and resettlement initiative has granted scholarship to no fewer than 60 students of Government Junior Secondary School, Abuja.
The SURE FOR YOU initiative, founded by ex-Immigration boss, Muhammadu Babandede, is a Not-for-profit Organization is established to help diffuse fears, anxieties, and trauma of the among vulnerable street children, Returnees and displace people to ensure their integration into Nigerian societies.
Speaking at the scholarship award, Babandede said: “It gives me great pleasure to stand before you as the Founder/CEO of SURE 4U on this important event for the presentation of Scholarship Award letters to these sixty young children: thirty for Primary and another 30 for their Junior Secondary Education. We thank Almighty God for making it possible for us to witness this occasion.
“SURE4U is a not-for-profit NGO that was unveiled on the August 2, 2022 by the Minister of State Finance, Budget and National Planning. The Organization has quite impressive record of some interventions and support for people in distress in collaboration with others. The journey has just began.
“Our collaboration with Transit School Initiative (TSI), helped in discovering large number of Out-Of-School-Children (OOSC) that have been undergoing transit classes. We thereafter set out to screen some of them based on merit, which invariably was informed by the current economic reality of parents or guardians or their absence, in order to enable the award of Scholarship.
“The Scholarships are in two categories: for the Primary School candidates, it will cover their entire six years of basic education and up to their JS 3, including the Junior NECO examination fees;
“Whereas candidates for JSS-1 will also enjoy full scholarship up to Junior NECO level.
Permit me to state here that, the Scholarship is a complete package including uniforms, footwear, Textbooks, and writing materials. However, while nothing is being expected from parents and guardians, there is need for them to observe strict supervisory roles by ensuring their children not only attend schools, but show seriousness in their studies.
“As indicated in the award letters, any pupils or student found wanting, the award shall be withdrawn and be given to a more seriously incline candidates from the TSI pool.
“Furthermore, I would like to seize this opportunity to call on all patriotic individuals, MDAS, NGOs, both National and International Foundations and Organizations to collaborate SURE4U in order to address the plight of OOSC nationwide. Just recently, we were stroked by revelations from World Bank that Nigeria has about 20 million OOSC and that 80% of this figure is from the North! We must therefore collectively consider the implications of this statistics.
“If allowed to remain on the streets without caring, they might be a ready source of recruitment by all manners of Criminals and Sinister groups. It is therefore high time to confront the malice of street children headlong in order to deter its antecedent menaces if we are to have a quiet sleep at nights.
“Mr. Chairman, permit me also to mention some of our intervention and support activities so far and within the few period of existence. These include- 1. Pilot Intervention Scheme at Tsangaya Almajiri school in Jahun, Jigawa State, In July 2022 in collaboration with NASCO GROUP, NIGERIA LIMITED. Fact finding mission in three Tsangaya Almajiri Schools here in Dakwa, August 2022.
“Payment of fine and release of a woman with her infant child from Correctional Centre in Kano State – August 2022. vi. Flood victims’ intervention program in Hadeja, Jigawa State with support of some notable individuals- September 2022. v. Pilot scheme program at Transit School Initiative (TSI) in Dakwa- September 2022 etc.
“In conclusion, may I seek your indulgence to further reiterate that the doors of SURE 4U are widely opened to all who want to partner with us in the areas of Migrants issues, Almajiri System Reformation, which are all within the scope of our objectives as the Organization that CARES.”
Programme Manager, Sure For You, Mannir Yari noted that it has conducted activities in three Almajiri Tsangaya schools in Dakwa, Bwari area council and also conducted fact-finding mission to the TSI transit schools in Dakwa.
Yari added that it has also conducted screening exercise for the purpose of selecting qualified candidates for sponsorship into primary and Junior secondary schools.
SURE 4U is a Not-for-profit Organization is established to help diffuse fears, anxieties, and trauma of the among vulnerable street children, Returnees and displace people to ensure their integration into Nigerian societies.
It was established to work in collaboration with relevant organizations and institutions in discouraging trafficking, smuggling of migrants and child abuse.
It has also been promoting the right and dignity of children by countering the exploitation of child labor and child abuse in all its forms through high impact interventions that address the critical needs of street children – more generally termed Orphans and Vulnerable Children