The Nigeria Police, Microfinance Bank has introduced a children education financing facility which aims at supporting parents to pay school fees seamlessly.
Known as Kid’s Education Account (KEA), a statement explained that the bank came up with the idea after realising that despite efforts by governments to enable significant enrolment in schools, millions of Nigerian children are still denied their right to education, essentially due to poverty level restrictions.
According to the bank, restricted access to education was one of the surest ways of transmitting poverty from generation to generation.
It noted that education was a vital human right, enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
In designing the product, the bank believed that every child should have the right to quality education so that they would have more chances in life, including employment opportunities, better health and also to participate in the political process.
Early childhood education and care as conceptualised and incorporated in the features of the product makes it a unique financing option currently being offers in the banking industry, the bank said in a statement.
The statement further pointed out that KEA encourages institutions and parents to open account with the bank to have unbridled access to finance education of their children and wards.
“Though, there are similar existing facilities offered by financial institutions in the country,” the bank stressed that it’s product has, “exceptional attractive features that would be exciting to parents and guardians.”
One of the sterling features was access to up to 50 per cent school fees which was offered as loan to interested parents.
The KEA also offers high interest rates on savings meant for the purpose of the account.
The bank said it had taken the burden of the generous interest offering to encourage parents operate their accounts, adding that it realised that education reduces poverty, boosts economic growth and increases income.
In addition, “it increases a person’s chances of having a healthy life, reduces maternal deaths, and combats diseases.
“Education can promote gender equality, promote peace and it is one of the most important investments parents can make and parent’s engagement in children’s education is progressively viewed as an essential support to children’s early learning, care, and education programmes.
“Effective parent engagement during the period from preschool through the early grades is a key contributor to children’s positive intellectual, socio-emotional skills outcomes, and healthy development,” the bank added in the statement.
