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By Rasheedat Oladotun Iliyas
An investigative report into inclusive education gap in Kwara State which revealed that visually impaired girls had been denied access to secondary school education for about ten years, has made an impact. Correspondent Rasheedat Oladotun Iliyas states that exactly 21 days after the report was published, the State Government announced approval of immediate admission of visually impaired girls into Queen Elizabeth Secondary School, Ilorin, offering free education, feeding, and accommodation.
Agnes Daniel, a resident of Tanke area, Ilorin, Kwara State, in her twenties, could not hide her excitement when the reporter reached out to her after the State Government’s announcement of Queen Elizabeth School, Ilorin, for visually impaired girls.
Since 2016 when Agnes completed her primary school education, she had been unable to further her studies because of the distance of the then only government approved secondary school for visually impaired persons in Kwara State, Government High School, Adeita, to her home.
Perhaps the distance would not have mattered if there was hostel accommodation for her to stay and money budgeted to cater for her feeding and other essentials.
With the formal announcement by the State Government on Thursday, 18th September, 2025, Agnes could not hide her emotion when the reporter called her to get her reaction on the development. She beamed with laughter as she responded, a sharp contrast to her disposition in the interview conducted earlier during the course of the investigation.
“Haaa, I was so glad, (laugh). I was so glad when I heard the news, I’m already packing my bag. I really appreciate it. May God bless the Governor and also the entire Harmony FM. I really appreciate it.”
Agnes is not the only one excited by this news, Bushra Abas, Muibat Babanloma and Jariat Mohamonu were also delighted when they were told of the move to return them to the classroom after many years of denial.
Bushra, the lone visually impaired female student at Government High School, Adeita, wanted to know if she should continue her studies there or wait at home until she would be resettled in the newly approved school.
Jariat eagerly asked when she could resume at the school while Muibat giggled as she expressed her readiness to further her education.
The Press Statement
On September 18th, 2025, the Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Dr Lawal Olohungbebethe sent to the reporter, a Press Statement which confirmed Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman Abdulrazaq’s approval of Queen Elizabeth School for the visually impaired girls. The same statement also appeared on the Commissioner’s Facebook page.
In the statement, Dr Olohungbebe indicated that the Governor’s approval came with “free education, feeding, and accommodation to strengthen inclusivity in education access.”
He said that “the policy reflects the government’s determination to reduce out-of-school children across the state” and that it “aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Four, which calls for inclusive and equitable quality education for all, without discrimination or barriers to learning.”
The Commissioner quoted Governor AbdulRazaq, as saying that the “decision is a bold step to guarantee no child is left behind in Kwara” and that “Every child, regardless of physical challenge, deserves quality education and opportunity.”
“…the new policy will open learning opportunities for visually impaired girls, promote social equity, tackle exclusion, reduce inequality, and consolidate human capital development across Kwara State,” Dr Olohungbebe explained.
As at September 19th, 2025, the post had generated 396 likes, 43 shares and 48 comments.
A day before the announcement, (September 17th, 2025), the Governor had presented two 32 seater coaster buses to the Kwara State School for Special Needs,Oyun and Queen Elizabeth Secondary School, Ilorin.
Parents React
After the news of the newly approved school broke out, the reporter also reached out to the parents of the girls who were more than relieved as they learned about it. They hoped to get notifications as activities gather momentum towards reintegration of the girls into a comfortable learning environment.
Grandma Bushra and Mama Muibat commended the Government for the free education, accommodation and food. They attributed the kind gesture to the recently published report by Radio Nigeria,HarmonyFM.
Queen Elizabeth Secondary School, Ilorin
A quick search on the internet indicated that Queen Elizabeth School, Ilorin, was established in 1956 by the Northern Region Government, under Sir Ahmadu Bello’s tenure. It is an all-girls school and was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth on November 21, 1957, with 54 students. By 1967, it had become part of Kwara State Government’s education system and had students from across the country.
During the recent donation of a coaster bus to the school, Governor Abdulrazaq had promised to ensure construction of the school’s perimeter fence as part of security measures.
In an earlier interview with the Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, he stated that the school and Kwara State School for Special Needs, enjoy direct allocation from the Ministry.
The Investigative Report on Inclusion
Radio Nigeria Harmony FM had on August 28th, 2025 published a report on the inability of the visually impaired girls in Kwara State to proceed to secondary school for about ten years, due to non availability of hostel facilities at the then only Government approved school for them, Government High School, Adeita.
While the visually impaired boys braved the storm to get educated in a seemingly uncomfortable environment, the girls were unable to get access, particularly when the hostel meant for them had been reallocated to some staff members of the school.
This situation forced some of the girls to seek secondary school education in neighbouring States such as Ekiti, Oyo and Lagos, while some of them stayed back at home idle as the years went by.
The investigative report which was done by Rasheedat Iliyas under the Wole Soyinka Center for Investigative Journalism, Female Reporters Leadership Programme, generated reactions from various quarters as many residents and stakeholders expressed disbelief that such an issue was happening in the State and for so long.
One of the people who reached out to the reporter was a renowned Social Activist and President, Muslim Media Watch Group of Nigeria, Alhaji Ibrahim Abdullahi. Alhaji Abdullahi initiated a meeting with the Kwara State Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Dr Lawal Olohungbebe, where he called for an urgent intervention to address the anomaly.
He was therefore elated when the news about the Governor’s approval broke out. Alhaji Abdullahi pointed out that the quick intervention by the State Government showed commitment to the yearnings of vulnerable people.
“Visually impaired girls ought not to be left out in our educational system, no one should be left out in the real sense. So by the action of Kwara State Government, inclusivity has been well established in the area of education and the State Government should be commended for it, not about the education being given to them alone, but also their welfare, in terms of accommodation, feeding and general welfare. This is a very good step which other States should emulate,” Alhaji Abdullahi remarked.
This is Fulfilled Mission…..NAB, Kwara Chairman
The Chairman, Nigeria Association for the Blind, NAB, Kwara State, Akeem Lawal described the approval of Queen Elizabeth School, Ilorin for visually impaired girls by Governor AbdulRahman Abdulrazaq as a landmark victory after ten years of agitation.
“This is indeed a fulfilled mission for the community of persons with disabilities because quite a number of our girls have to flee to other states in search of education while so many of them have been at home, for more than ten years, with some never believing that this will see the light of the day.
With this kind gesture, we’ve rekindled their hope and we can say categorically that the future of visually impaired girls in Kwara State is promising. So we can not thank them enough for this wonderful initiative,” he maintained.
The NAB Chairman also appreciated Radio Nigeria Harmony FM for the spotlight given to the situation which, according to him, paid off.
“We are using this opportunity to as well thank HarmonyFM for your intervention because you’ve been our dependable partner in this struggle, so we cannot thank you enough, we do not have the right word to appreciate your impact.”
Mr Lawal affirmed that the association had collated the data of affected students while the process to integrate them into Queen Elizabeth School within this first term of 2025/2026 Academic Session, was ongoing. He also mentioned that efforts were on to mobilize and sensitize people, particularly girls already above school age, to return to the classroom.
“For some of them, who do not have age on their side, we are going to see how we can talk to them, to make them realize that even with their current age they can still go back to school.
So we are doing everything possible through our association, sister association, our association at the grassroots at each of the 16 local government areas in Kwara State, we are reaching out to them, and of course we have a very strong synergy with community leaders,”
When asked how soon the students will be back in the classroom, Mr Lawal responded:
“We’ve been rest assured that they will resume this academic session in a matter of days.”
The Governor’s approval addressed key concerns identified in the earlier report, including free education, accommodation, transportation, and feeding. It is expected that other pressing issues, such as the shortage of special education teachers and the provision of adequate teaching and learning aids, will also be tackled. More importantly, the goal remains to make education in all public schools inclusive, ensuring that persons with disabilities have the choice to either reside in boarding facilities or study closer to home.
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