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A Professor of Adolescent and Reproductive Health Counselling, Olufunmilayo Osakinle, has urged policymakers and lawmakers to make sex education compulsory and introduce it into school curricular across the country.
Osakinle said exposing children to in-depth knowledge from the cradle of education would make them escape cases of sexual molestations that could befall them at adolescence and checkmate the rampancy of teenage pregnancy and rape.
The professor said this in Ado Ekiti on Tuesday while delivering the 60th Inaugural Lecture of the Ekiti State University (EKSU) titled, ‘Sexuality Education of the Girl – Child: Guidance For a Better Tomorrow.’
The scholar posited that to save Nigeria’s future, that the legislatures should enact a bill that would make sex education compulsory, saying the country can’t fold its arms and allow children to be defiled through sexual exploitations.
She said, “Policymakers and legislatures should enact bills that will make sex education mandatory and taught in all schools.
“Apart from that bill that will be passed into law, the teachers should objectively pass knowledge to girls children about sex education devoid of any religious or cultural colouration and harassment to the children.
“Also in addressing the shortcomings of uneducated parents, who shy away from giving sex education to their girl children, there should be the provision of daycare and parenting centres for those parents.”
Osakinle canvassed the organisation of regular seminars, workshops and conferences to keep girl children abreast of their sexuality, to be able to cope in any hostile environment.
Applauding the scholar for the well-researched lecture, the EKSU Vice-Chancellor, Professor Eddy Olanipekun, advised that it was worthwhile for parents to invest in the education of girl children, saying this remains one of the best ways to protect the integrity of any nation.
“With this lecture and research works that are contained therein, I know those who still think that a girl child is nothing and are still moving around searching for a male child in such a way that would provoke God, would have a rethink, ” he said.
