From classroom to careers: How EU funding early learning is rewriting Sokoto’s education story

By Gbolahan Salman Sokoto

In a modest classroom in Gwadabawa, five-year-olds are learning not just their alphabets and numbers, but skills that community leaders say are shaping future doctors, nurses and university graduates.

A decade after its introduction, the early learning intervention funded by the European Union and implemented by UNICEF is steadily transforming foundational education in Sokoto State — offering what stakeholders describe as a sustainable pathway out of the region’s out-of-school crisis.

Unlike conventional out-of-school programmes that focus on reintegration, the Early Learning Method targets children at the formative stage, equipping them with literacy, numeracy and creative skills before learning gaps widen.

At Sultan Ibrahim Primary School, one of the 10 pioneer schools selected for the intervention in the state, the impact is already visible.

Chairman of the School-Based Management Committee (SBMC), Ibrahim Bello Gwadabawa, described the initiative as both timely and life-changing for the community.

“This programme is different from the regular out-of-school approach, but it serves as one of the key solutions to the problem. It has also given us an avenue to appeal to parents to support their children’s education,” he said during a two-day media dialogue attended by journalists from Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states.

The school’s Headmaster, Ibrahim Sani, disclosed that 110 pupils — 53 girls and 57 boys, are currently enrolled in the early learning classes. According to him, the school has benefited from the programme for about 10 years.

The curriculum introduces children, mostly from age five, to alphabetic literacy, basic numeracy and creative handwork.

“We teach them alphabets and numeracy. We also engage them in creative handwork. Some of the children, even at the age of five, can already produce simple crafts,” Sani explained.

Beyond the classroom walls, the long-term results are beginning to tell a compelling story.

According to the SBMC chairman, several former pupils are now pursuing higher education in Sokoto and even abroad, including in India, while others are enrolled in health institutions within Gwadabawa.

“We have former students who are now doctors, nurses and other professionals. Some are in universities in Sokoto and even India, as well as the School of Health here in Gwadabawa,” he said.

Currently covering 10 of Sokoto’s 23 local government areas, the EU-funded, UNICEF-implemented programme focuses on underserved communities where access to quality early childhood education remains limited.

Journalists at the dialogue commended the initiative, describing it as a preventive strategy that tackles the out-of-school challenge at its roots. They called on federal and state governments to scale up the Early Learning Method across more schools, while urging parents to take stronger ownership of their children’s education.

Participants stressed that sustained funding, community participation and parental commitment will be critical to expanding the programme’s reach and securing its long-term gains.

For many in Gwadabawa, the message is clear: solving the out-of-school crisis may well begin with investing in a child’s very first classroom experience.