Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has called on the Federal Government to initiate policies that would empower young girls in the country.
Abubakar made the call in a statement by his media office to mark this year’s International Day of the Girl-Child on Wednesday in Abuja.
He said girls should grow up believing that they could do, and become anything they wished.
He said Nigeria’s population of young girls was an army of problem-solvers waiting to be unleashed, if only they could be given equal access to quality education.
Abubakar said: “Bear in mind that when we educate the girl-child, we educate a family, educate a community and eventually end up educating a nation.
“Until we prioritise the education of the girl-child, there will continue to be a limit on how far and well we can develop as a nation in the 21st century.”
The former vice president noted that gone were the days when all that a girl was groomed to become was a “beautiful bride who would one day satisfy a man by keeping the house and the kitchen”.
Abubakar said that Nigerian girls should be empowered to function in all spheres of human endeavour.