By Moses Emorinken, Abuja
As part of efforts to reduce number of out-of-school children, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) Group has partnered a visual artist to teach kids on how to create artworks from dirt and other materials..
The firm noted that by teaching the kids how to create artworks and supporting them, they would be encouraged to go back to school.
It further said the training would give them skills for the future.
Speaking during an exhibition featuring artworks by out of school kids, Country Director for AFD Group Xavier Muron, said: “We are a development partner and finances developmental projects. This means that we take care of not just economic growth but also environmental and social issues, which is key to making sure that we get impact in terms of increasing livelihoods, especially in rural areas and even in urban cities.
“There is a need for us to be closer to the civil society and make sure that we can target the poorest. What we do is identify good partners, and we thought that the idea of partnering artists was something quite interesting and refreshing in the way we design our project. We hope that a few children from this initiative will be able to go back to school after being involved in the workshop that was developed through the art concepts and having them interested enough to go back in a room to learn more.”
Explaining the inspiration behind the initiative, a visual artist, Chidimma Urunwa, said: “This project made me do a research and I found out that Nigeria has the highest number of out-of-school kids. There are many factors affecting this. Therefore, in any way we can help, we need to reach out to these kids in the streets by taking them back to school, providing school bags, books etc. In my case, I use my art to reach out to them in the streets.
“I am a visual artist and I own an art studio called Urunwa Art Studio where I produce art works – mainly painting and digital arts. I am also into philanthropy, that is going into the streets and working with the kids with my talents; using artwork to attract them and keep them off the streets.
“My mum’s life influenced everything I do with the kids. Even if she did not have the money to pay for their school fees, she gave them the opportunity to come to our house for extra lessons when they did not have enough money to pay for school. I reasoned that if she could do that, why can’t I as an artist use my talents to influence and interact with these kids…”
“I am also a recycle artist. I pick up straws, cut them into tiny pieces and use them to produce artworks. I taught the kids to know that even if they do not have materials for their arts, they can actually pick things around them to produce art materials. I taught the kids how to use charcoal to produce at work. In essence, the kids are learning to create wealth for themselves with things people see as dirt.
“I also try my best to speak out for the girl child in all my paintings. This is because a girl child needs to have a voice and needs to know that she can become what she wants to be.”
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