The Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) has pledged to improve learning conditions for adolescent girls in Enugu State through the renovation of public secondary schools, provision of teaching and learning materials, and upgrading of sanitation facilities.
The initiative also commended Governor Peter Mbah and the Enugu State Government for their support for the education sector, describing government commitment as essential to achieving its objectives.
The Project Coordinator of AGILE, Dr Ebere Georgina Chukwu-Onuoha, spoke during a media roundtable at the International Conference Centre, Enugu, on Wednesday, where she highlighted the programme’s interventions and called for stronger media collaboration to advance girls’ education.
Chukwu-Onuoha explained that AGILE, a World Bank-backed initiative, was implementing Component 1.2, which focuses on rehabilitating public secondary schools, providing essential learning materials and improving sanitation facilities to create safer and more conducive environments for students.
“Currently, what we are intervening in this batch is Component 1.2, which deals with renovation of public secondary schools, providing teaching and learning materials, and washing facilities,” she said.
She noted that inadequate toilet facilities in many public secondary schools posed challenges to students’ welfare, particularly adolescent girls who needed appropriate facilities to manage menstrual hygiene.
“You know, most times when you come to secondary schools, they don’t have conducive toilets. So, through AGILE projects, we are providing standard toilets, so that the girl-child will have a conducive environment where she can take care of herself when she is menstruating,” she added.
The coordinator said improved infrastructure and access to essential facilities would encourage regular school attendance, enhance students’ comfort and enable adolescent girls to participate fully in academic activities.
She also disclosed that AGILE had conducted a school validation exercise across Enugu State to assess the condition of public secondary schools and identify their infrastructural and educational needs, ensuring that interventions were directed at areas requiring attention.
Chukwu-Onuoha called on media organisations to partner with the initiative in publicising its activities, raising awareness about girls’ education and encouraging communities to support efforts to improve learning conditions.
Also speaking, Engr. Alex Ugwunnadi said the initiative was designed to provide conducive learning environments and empower adolescent girls, noting that the quality of school infrastructure could influence students’ learning experiences and academic performance.
“The keywords of this initiative are conducive learning and empowerment for the adolescent girls’ child,” he said.
Ugwunnadi observed that deteriorating infrastructure and inadequate facilities in many schools could negatively affect teaching and learning.
“If you look around us, most of the schools are in bad states, and they have a lot of negative impacts on them. But the essence of AGILE is to make them very safe and conducive for the adolescent girls’ child,” he stated.
He explained that AGILE’s interventions extended beyond infrastructure rehabilitation to include the provision of teaching and learning materials needed to support effective education.
“It does not end with infrastructure, but also provision of teaching and learning materials that are necessary for the students to have good education. So, that is the essence of AGILE in that regard,” he said.
The project representatives, responding to journalists’ questions, clarified that AGILE was a state-owned project supported by the World Bank to strengthen educational opportunities and improve learning conditions for adolescent girls.
They urged parents, community leaders, school authorities, education stakeholders and the media to support the initiative, stressing that sustained collaboration would be essential to improving school facilities and ensuring that adolescent girls had access to safer, more inclusive and supportive learning environments.
