Crr — Educationists under the aegis of the Regional Education Directorate in the Central River Region (CRR) have begun a 10-daycampaign aimed at sensitising parents to send their children to school, so as to consolidate the gains registered on national enrollment and retention strides.

The initiative, funded by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), is in line with the leadership's commitment to the development of education, particularly in achieving the six Education For All (EFA) goals, as evident in the provision of Free Education for Girls.

Speaking to this reporter in an interview, the principal education officer in the region, Alpha Camara, reiterated that the objective of the campaign is to get school-going-age children to be enrolled.

He observed that there are more school- going-age children in the targeted communities that have neither been enrolled in the conventional schools nor in the madrassas. The campaign, Camara went on, will spread the message about the importance of education to national development. He commended UNICEF for their efforts in complementing government's efforts in providing assistance towards educating our future leaders.

Addressing the various communities, a senior education officer in Region Five, Janko Sanneh, reinforced the call for parents to send children to school and allow them to complete. He spoke extensively on the importance of education towards national development. Education, he posited, preparescitizens to be self-reliant, independent, obedient and loyal to their nation.

An education officer and Madrassa focal person in the region, Mutarr Sambou, said the root cause of poverty and hazardous diseases like HIV/AIDS is ignorance. Therefore he emphasised, access to education as the key in helping to liberate people from poverty, instability, as well as HIV/AIDS.