UK gives millions to Nigeria
2007-11-23 21:07
Kampala - Britain is giving more than £100m to build classrooms in Nigeria as part of a push to provide free primary education for every child in the Commonwealth, officials announced on Friday.
There are 30 million primary-age children who are not in school in the 53-nation club composed largely of Britain and its former colonies, and education is a priority topic for Commonwealth leaders meeting in Uganda this week for their biennial summit.
Nigeria it has seven million children not in education, more than any other Commonwealth country.
Britain said the money was intended to build 4 000 new classrooms and provide resources for 2 000 schools.
"What we want in the next few years is that every single child in the world can go to school," Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown told students and teachers during a visit to a primary school in a Kampala suburb on Friday.
"We could be the first generation in history where we could say that every child is able to go to school."
British officials said Brown would encourage other Commonwealth leaders to commit to a programme of investment in education during their three days of talks at a resort near Kampala.
'Concerns about governance'
Brown was greeted with traditional dancing, drummers in plumed headdresses and a brass band when he visited St Peter's a Roman Catholic primary school.
After meeting students, teachers and parents, Brown praised the 100-year-old school for its good results, and Uganda for abolishing primary school fees, but said it was unacceptable that its 2 500 pupils are taught in classes of up to 100.
Britain gave Uganda about £15m this year in education assistance.
Last year, Britain's International Development Secretary Hilary Benn said Britain would spend £35m on poverty reduction in 2006-07 instead of the £55m originally planned. In an explanation to parliament, Benn cited "concerns about governance, public administration expenditure, and some of the government's new budget plans".
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has in recent years been criticised for moves to consolidate power - including reversing term limits designed to keep presidents from holding onto power indefinitely - and quash dissent as well as his failure to curb corruption.
Asked about criticism of Museveni on Friday, Brown said that "the internal politics of the country and the debates about that are questions for (Uganda)".
- AP