Hunger responsible for 40% school dropouts -SAGE

Hunger among school children has been identified as a factor militating against the development of education in Nigeria.
A group, Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship, which gave the indication in a press statement in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, said available statistics revealed that hunger is responsible for over 40 percent of the dropouts among children of school age.
The statement signed by the Coordinator of SAGE in Ekiti State, Apostle Julius Oluwafemi, regretted that over 870 million school children are undernourished globally according to the findings of the United Nations World Food Programme.
The group noted that the rising incidence has been affecting the standard of education across the globe, particularly in a developing nation like Nigeria.
Oluwafemi, who also doubles as Principal of Community Grammar School, Kota Ekiti in Ekiti East local government, added that SAGE recently commenced the production and distribution of food items to some selected schools in the council to stem the tide of hunger among children.
“In education sector, hunger can cause setback to students’ performances in cognitive, psycho-motive and affective domains of knowledge. It can fuel truancy, loss of concentration, illness and unrest among students.
“SAGE realizes that students’ poor performances in schools would amount to a waste of money being expended on them by parents and governments. Hence, our determination to eliminate the menace in schools to enhance academic performance”, he said.
Oluwafemi appealed to stakeholders in education to devote more energy and resources to fighting hunger for the country to have a crime-free society and build a prosperous future.