17-year-old Mustapha Muhammad was formerly enrolled in a public special school but Muhammad’s parents withdrew him from the public school due to overcrowded classrooms, unconducive environment, as well as lack of learning facilities and required support.
Just like Aihimegbe, Muhammad has Down syndrome. Before he was enrolled at HOPES, he couldn’t do anything with his hands. His situation is, however, changing as he can now pick objects by himself.
Fourteen-year-old Habibat Usman is another beneficiary at the NGO. This reporter gathered that she used to scribble zeroes in her book. Although she can speak and hear, she also has Down syndrome.
Whenever she (Habibat) is going home, she will say, ‘Aunty, bye, bye’ and in the morning, she will say aunty good morning. She is calm now. We used to chase her to [get her to] sit down in one place, but now, she understands that she has to behave well at school.
One of the parents, Muhammad Kabiru, who withdrew his child from a public special school said, “I was introduced to HOPES by one of my colleagues, and I was told it is a well-established school suitable for them. So far, I am very happy with how the school is taking care of the children, especially the vulnerable ones.
“My child is always excited about going there [to HOPES]. Even if there is a holiday or during the weekend, he would still want to go. He would take his uniform, insisting that he must go to school. I can testify that they are taking proper care of him here,” he said.
HOPES, a non-profit organisation caters for the needs of children with disabilities, offering them free education. It was established in 2018. Thirteen students have been awarded scholarships by HOPES. Most beneficiaries are children with hearing and vision impairment and mental health disabilities, especially Down syndrome and autism.
The school offers scholarships to children with disabilities. Abdulkareem, one of the management team said, “Most of the parents brought their children to our school for better performance and care. The parents always appreciate our work on their children as they know how difficult it is to handle such children. We have received a lot of positive feedback and recommendations from the parents.
“Most of our children are from average-income families, where it is hard for them to spend a lot of money to send their children outside the country where children with such needs are catered for. The school was created to serve the community, most especially children with special needs".
A report published in Premium Times last year revealed that out of the country’s about 10.2 million out-of-school children, according to Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) data, Sokoto State has 436,570.
ActionAid Nigeria pointed out that 95.5 percent of children with disabilities are out-of-school because of their condition, while an analysis of the data in last year’s UNICEF report shows that children with disabilities are more likely to be out of school than children without disabilities.
But according to the Child’s Rights Act (CRA), every child is entitled to free, mandatory and universal basic education provided for by the government.
One of the core objectives of HOPES is to reduce the number of out-of-school children with disabilities in Nigeria. “We aim to give them sound education to stand for themselves in society so that they will not be left behind and can also do what those without disabilities can do through education,” AbdulKareem Ibrahim, a co-founder of the NGO noted.
The school also has a section for students without disabilities, where parents pay their children’s tuition fees. The income generated from this section, as well as donations from philanthropists and other well hearted people, are used to pay the salary of the staff and other expenses.
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