Akwa Ibom: How farming is affecting pupil’s attendance in public schools – School heads

Some heads of public primary schools in Akwa Ibom State have explained why a pupil’s attendance has been low since the beginning of the term.

Some head teachers of public primary schools in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area blamed low school attendance on farming activities.

Encouraged by Governor Umo Eno’s administration’s support for farming and rural development, many Akwa Ibom residents are into subsistence and commercial farming, particularly in the rural areas.

“Parents have taken some of their wards to farm because this is a farming season,” Emilia Benson-Aqua, the headteacher of St. Patrick Catholic School, Ibekwe Akpanya/Ikot Itina in Mkpat Enin, told PREMIUM TIMES on Monday.

St. Francis Catholic School, Ikot Abia Enin

Mrs Benson-Aqua’s statement was corroborated by the teachers at

Pupils at St. Francis Catholic School, Ikot Abia Enin

St. Francis Catholic School, and Ikot Abia Enin in Mkpat Enin.

The school teachers offered this explanation when a not-for-profit organisation, TPaul Foundation, an offshoot of TPaul Integrated Services Ltd, visited some schools to distribute writing materials, including exercise books and biro, to pupils and students.

The company, which an indigene of the area owns, is passionate about the education of young people in the area and has offered scholarships, among other initiatives, to the people.

The company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Anthony Paul, said the initiative is the company’s way of giving back to society.

Poor attendance in school

Communities in the Mkpat Enin Local Government area are mainly agrarian, with most people engaged in subsistence farming.

During the farming season, primarily between February and June, a more significant part of the population is engaged in farming activities, with many families assisted by their children.

This affects school attendance as some pupils spend some days on the farm to assist their parents.

For instance, the primary school in Ibekwe Akpanya/Ikot Itina has a pupil population of 251, but only 80 turned up for school on Monday when the team visited.

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At Government Primary School in Ikot Ebak, only 139 pupils out of a population of 366 pupils attended school on Monday.

The distribution of the writing materials has so far taken staff members of the foundation to seven public schools in the area, including two Secondary Schools, Community Secondary School, Nya Odiong and Father Fintan Memorial Comprehensive Secondary School, Ikot Ntot.

Other schools visited by the foundation include St. Christopher Catholic School, Ikot Abasi Akpan and St. Patrick Primary School Ikot Akpaobong.

Addressing the pupils and students during the exercise, Promise Effiong, a representative of the foundation, advised them to take their studies seriously and avoid acts that are capable of ruining their future.