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Tag: Education

  • New bill wants first degree qualifications for elective offices

    New bill wants first degree qualifications for elective offices

    A new bill to raise to first degree the qualification needed for elective offices in NIgeria has scaled the second reading in the House of Representatives.

    The current position of the law is that a person seeking to become the President of Nigeria should possess a minimum of Senior Secondary School Certificate or its equivalent.

    The same applies to persons seeking to be a Governor, Senator or Member of a legislative assembly in Nigeria.

    However, in a move to increase the minimum educational qualification to a university degree, the House on Tuesday passed a bill for second reading to alter the constitution.

    The bill, with the long title, “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to Review the Required Educational Qualification for Election into certain Political Offices; and for Related Matters”, was sponsored by Rep. Adewumi Oriyomi Onanuga.

    The provision on educational qualification for elective offices is contained in Section 131(d) of the constitution.

    Recall that the Speaker of the House, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, had in January this year, echoed the issue of the low educational requirement for elective offices and how it might affect leadership performance in a fast-changing, technology-driven world.

    Gbajabiamila gave his views at the 52nd Convocation Lecture of the University of Lagos.

    He had delivered a lecture on the topic, “Building Back Better: Creating a New Framework for Tertiary Education in Nigeria in the 21st Century.”

    Gbajabiamila stated, “I also sincerely believe that the National Assembly needs to look into section 131 (d) of the 1999 constitution to increase the minimum educational qualification for persons aspiring to be future Presidents of Nigeria and other top offices including the National Assembly as against the current minimum requirement of a Secondary School Certificate or its equivalent.

    “As we have reduced the age for eligibility to contest those offices, so also, we should increase the minimum educational requirement. It will be another step in reforming our electoral system and providing strong leadership for the country.”

    On Tuesday, the House passed a bill for second reading to give a push to Gbajabiamila’s call.

    Onanuga, while leading the debate on the bill had observed that it was curious that to qualify for employment into senior cadres in Nigerian civil service, an applicant must be a holder of the National Youth Service Corps certificate.

    She noted that the applicant must already be a graduate as only graduates went for NYSC deployment.

    She added that it was strange that a person seeking to lead the whole country, including the graduate, was required to possess only a senior secondary school certificate or its equivalent.

    Tuesday’s plenary was presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Rep. Ahmed Idris Wase.

  • Why my administration invested so much in education – Ex-President Jonathan

    Why my administration invested so much in education – Ex-President Jonathan

    Former President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has said no country can make progress without educated citizenry as education is vital to the development of the manpower resources of any society.

    The one time number one citizen, who was the keynote speaker, stated this on Monday at the maiden five-day Bayelsa State Education Summit, with the theme: “Optimising the delivery, performance and sustainability of outcomes in the education sector,” in Yenagoa.

    Highlighting the contributions he made in the development of the education sector when he was governor of the state and at the national level, Dr. Jonathan emphasised the important role of information and communication technology.

    According to him, his administration made substantial investments at the national and state levels, including providing scholarship programmes.

    He stressed that his recognition of the vital place of an educated citizenry was the reason behind his administration’s investment in almajiri schools in the North.

    His words: “Education is a strategic tool for national development and social change. You cannot make progress without educated citizenry. People cannot develop without functional education.

    “Today, ICT is key. It is replacing almost everything. The teaching of ICT has to start right from the nursery schools.”

    He applauded the vision of Governor Douye Diri and his team in holding the summit to fashion out a sustainable policy for the sector.

    He urged the state government to legalise its educational policies so that successive government would not jettison them.
    .
    Jonathan also charged stakeholders at the summit to consider introducing a common language in the educational curriculum.

    “If we must come together, we must have a common language. When you want to develop our educational policies, do not forget the languages because language is very critical in creating global citizens.”

    Declaring the summit open, Governor Douye Diri said at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bayelsa was handicapped as it lacked the equipment required in delivering remote learning.

    On the need to back educational policies with a law, the governor said a bill would be sent to the House of Assembly to that effect.

    Commenting on the need to adopt a common language, Senator Diri said already, the state executive council had adopted Kolokuma as the chosen dialect and directed the Ministries of Education and Ijaw National Affairs to ensure implementation of the policy.

    According to him, “language is not only critical in education but also in establishing one’s identity and conscious efforts must be made to ensure our language does not go into extinction.”

    He called on stakeholders in the sector to develop a 15-year education plan that could be reviewed periodically to enable Bayelsans take their rightful place in the country and the world.

    Diri also assured that his administration would continue to support the model schools he inherited
    from his predecessor and called for support from the private sector, particularly the oil companies operating in the state.

    Chairman of the state Education Development Trust Fund and one-time Minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Turner Isoun represented by Prof Francis Sikoki, said the board remains committed to providing interventions in the education sector.

    In their goodwill messages, chairman of the state traditional rulers council, King Alfred Diete-Spiff, representative of the Executive Secretary, Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board, Mr. Dan Kikile, and a representative of the Managing Director, Sterling Bank, described Senator Diri’s vision on holding the summit as brilliant.

    They said this was time to put Bayelsa on the global map.

  • Kogi declares ‘state of emergency’ on education

    Kogi declares ‘state of emergency’ on education

    The Kogi Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mr. Wemi Jones, on Friday said the State Government has declared ”a state of emergency” in the education sector in the state.

    Jones disclosed this on Friday during the Educational Task Force Meeting with some critical Educational Stakeholders in Kogi Central Senatorial District, at Government Day Secondary School (GDSS), Iruvucheba, Okene Local Governnent Area of the state.

    He expressed optimism that the move by Gov. Yahaya Bello, had brought innovations and remodelling of secondary schools in the state, with a view to making the state regain its lost glory in Education.

    He noted that with the state having two Universities, there was a dare need to adequately prepare students in secondary schools to fit into the vision of the governor for quality assurance and become self reliant.

    Jones described education as the only guarantee for the future, noting that the emergency system had also manifested in several ongoing renovation and rehabilitation projects in the Central Senatorial District and helped to reposition the education system in the state.

    He emphasised the need for the state to move in the direction of science, technology, English and Mathematics, for it not to “be left behind in the new wave of educational development, hence the declaration of a State of Emergency on the sector”.

    He described the commitment of Bello to education as unprecedented, adding that the state government was conscious of the shortfall of teachers in secondary schools and making efforts to fill the vacancies occasioned by retirements, transfers and the civil service reforms.

    Jones, however solicited the support of stakeholders to the success of the adoption and mentorship programme, saying that the state government could not do it alone while calling on teachers and students to maintain discipline.

  • Bella Shmurda replies LASU after plea to complete studies

    Bella Shmurda replies LASU after plea to complete studies

    Music star, Bella Shmurda has replied to the Lagos State University (LASU), which begged him to complete his degree.

    The tertiary institution had urged the singer, born Akinbiyi Abiola Ahmed to return for the completion of his degree programme at the institution.

    The 25-year-old artiste had stated that he failed some courses while at the institution, forcing him to quit school.

    He wrote: “I now worth over half a billion streams (550millions streams to be precise).

    “I for still Dey lasu Dey wine and dine with carryovers and stranded with nothing in my pocket… forever glad I did my thing.”

    Reacting, LASU on its official Twitter handle said: “Happy birthday @fineboybella. Glad you have come this far pursuing your dream.

    “Also glad @LASUOfficial played a part in your beautiful story because Univ. Don’t make people rich, only incubate them to find and achieve purpose. BTW, please come back to class and earn your degree.”

    In a new development, Bella responded to the institution via a line from his hit song, “Vision 2020” where he noted four years spend there didn’t impact his life in any way.

    “4 years in @LASUOfficial is really nothing”, he tweeted.

  • Kano govt to establish ICT Girls Secondary School – Commissioner

    Kano govt to establish ICT Girls Secondary School – Commissioner

    Kano State Government has announced plans to establish an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Girls Day Secondary School, to boost ICT education among women in the state.

    The Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Sanusi Sa’idu-Kiru, made the disclosure while reviewing activities of the ministry in 2021, on Saturday in Kano.
    Sa’idu-Kiru said that the school project sited at Kofar-Na’isa area of Kano metropolis had reached advanced stage of completion.
    He said that about N300 million would be expended on the maiden school project, adding that it was designed to admit 360 students.
    “The school will take up anytime from now because contractors are already on-site,” he said.
    Sai’du-Kiru said the state government had renovated various schools including Government Girls Secondary School, Huguma and Government Girls Arabic Secondary School, Lakwaya, among others.
    He said that the government had also constructed Prof. Hafsat Umar Ganduje Girls Secondary School and another one in Dala Local Government Area, to enhance girl child education.
    While mega secondary schools would be established in each of the five emirate councils in the state.
    “The one for Kano Emirate will be located at Filin-Bola along Court Road at the cost of N300 million, works have reached an advanced stage,” he said.
    The Commissioner reiterated government commitment to accord premium to education sector to fast track sustainable social and economic development of the state and the country.
  • Education, infrastructure get highest allocation as Sanwo-Olu presents N1.39trn budget to Lagos Assembly

    Education, infrastructure get highest allocation as Sanwo-Olu presents N1.39trn budget to Lagos Assembly

    The Lagos State government has earmarked huge capital expenditure in the 2022 fiscal year to service key growth areas to consolidate the recovery of the state’s economy and positively impact residents’ livelihoods.

    In the proposed N1.388 trillion budget for the year 2022 presented to the Lagos State House of Assembly on Wednesday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu revealed that the state would spend N325 billion to deliver vital infrastructure projects in key sectors to energise and expand the growth of the state’s economy.

    The key areas of growth identified by the governor include works and infrastructure, waterfront infrastructure development, agriculture, transportation, energy and mineral resources, tourism, entertainment and creative industry, commerce and industry, as well as wealth creation and employment.

    He explained that the human capital development drive of his administration was projected to take a leap in 2022, with an allocation of 21.24 per cent combined in the total expenditure to education and health.

    The proposed budget, christened “Budget of Consolidation”, will be the last full-year fiscal plan of the state before the general elections in 2023.

    In his presentation, Governor Sanwo-Olu believes the coming year presents an opportunity for the government to consolidate on the progress recorded, while leveraging investment inflow, partnership and business-friendly policies, to maximally translate its achievements into noticeable positive impact in the lives of residents.

    About N823.4 billion, representing 59 per cent of the 2022 budget, is earmarked for capital expenditure while recurrent expenditure – including personnel cost, overhead, and debt services – is N565 billion – representing 41 per cent.

    The governor noted that his administration had clearly articulated its vision in governance through the T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda in the last two years, adding that the state was now looking towards the future with the activation of the implementation of a 30-year development plan (2021-2051) which replaced previous 13-year growth plan developed in 2012.

    “Year 2022 Budget is the next step on our journey to true and sustainable greatness in Lagos,” he said. “The challenging environment requires that we focus our interventions on areas of greatest social impact and achieving the greatest good for the greatest number in the shortest possible time.

    “It is in this light that we are presenting the Year 2022 Budget of Consolidation with a size of N1,388,285,459,990.51. This financial proposal is presented with a sense of duty and absolute commitment to the transformation of Lagos to a preferred global destination for residence, commerce, and investment.

    “The budget projects to see a continuing but gradual recovery to growth in economic activity as the global economy cautiously recovers from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.”

    Of the total proposed expenditure, N1.135 trillion would accrue from Internally Generated Revenues (IGRs) and federal transfers, while deficit financing of N253 billion would be sourced from external and domestic loans, and bonds projected to be within the state’s fiscal sustainability parameters.

    The state would be earmarking an aggregate of N137.64 billion, representing 9.92 per cent of the 2022 budget, for the funding of green investment in environment, social protection, housing and community amenities.

    On Security, the governor explained that the state’s continued investment in the sector had reaped positive dividends, stressing that more allocation would be channelled to security in 2022 to make Lagos safer for living, working and investment.

    Despite the global economic downturn, he said Lagos had seen more construction machinery deployed to deliver new infrastructure in the areas of roads, rail, housing, health, education and waterways.

    “There has been significant progress on the Lagos Rail Mass Transit projects, which include both the 27-kilometre Blue line that will run from Okokomaiko to Marina, and the 32-kilometre Red line that will run from Agbado to Oyigbo, and eventually to Marina,” Governor Sanwo-Olu told the lawmakers.

    “These rails, when completed, will deliver a combined 32.5 million people every month on their respective routes, reducing travel time by over 250 per cent, increasing the productivity and quality of life of our people.

    “The Red line will come with eight new modern train stations, 10 new overpasses and 13 pedestrian bridges. These ambitious projects are expected to be commissioned in the fourth quarter of 2022.”

    The outgoing year’s budget, the governor said, performed “remarkably well” despite the challenges encountered by the state, noting that the expenditure performance at the third quarter of 2021 rose to 80 per cent.

    He said the need to stabilise the state’s economy led to the adoption of far-reaching cost-saving measures, including restructuring of local borrowings to reduce overall debt service obligations on Lagos.

    Governor Sanwo-Olu thanked the residents for supporting and standing by his administration in the past two years.

    Noting that there were more challenges lying ahead, he urged them to join hands with him in delivering his programmes for common good, with an assurance that the pace of governance would be amplified in the coming years.

  • ‘We agree standard of education in Nigeria has fallen but…’ – …FG

    ‘We agree standard of education in Nigeria has fallen but…’ – …FG

    The Federal Government on Tuesday said it admits that the standard of education in the country has fallen but funding cannot be left to it alone.

    This was revealed by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige on Tuesday when he featured on a monitored Channels Television programme.

    The minister was reacting to the looming industrial action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

    “The state of education here is not anything to cheer about, I agree. The standard has fallen, I agree. But education cannot be funded by Government alone,” the minister said.

    “I know that because I schooled here in Nigeria. I did my primary education, secondary and university here and I did my post-graduate outside the country. But I can tell you, in other climes education is not only done by government”.

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG recalls that ASUU President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, had on Monday issued a three-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to address all issues in the December 2020 Agreement.

    He warned that should the government fail to implement the Memorandum of Action signed with ASUU prior to the suspension of the last industrial action, the union would be compelled to embark on another nationwide strike.

    Some of the issues include unpaid allowances as well as the universities revitalisation fund.

    But Ngige maintained that he has continued to do everything within his power to meet their demands.

    “As Minister of Labour, I have even crossed my own territory. I have done extra-territorial jobs to make sure that we satisfy their members,” he said.

    “They know I’m doing my best for them, I am the one talking to finance, education and the NUC”.

  • Nigerians are competitive abroad due to good education from home – Buhari

    Nigerians are competitive abroad due to good education from home – Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari has said the competitiveness which Nigerians display abroad is a result of the good education they acquired before travelling out of the country.

    This is as he urged Nigerians in Diaspora to always abide by the rules of their host countries.

    The President said this when he met with the Minister of State Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, Shaikh Shakboot Alnahyan, at the sidelines of the Paris Peace Forum on Friday.

    Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina disclosed this in a statement titled ‘Nigerians Competitive Both Home And Abroad, President Buhari Tells UAE Minister.’

    Adesina quoted Buhari as saying, “Nigerians are all over the place, very competitive. And the competitiveness starts from home, where they have acquired good education, gone into businesses, and then take all that abroad.”

    The President encouraged Nigerians in Diaspora to “subject themselves to the rules and standards of the country in which they live either as working class, or doing businesses.”

    He welcomed the offer by UAE to partner with Nigeria in the areas of renewable energy, agriculture, infrastructure logistics, and provision of vaccines to further control the COVID-19 pandemic.

    On his own part, Minister Alnahyan said his country “thinks very highly “of President Buhari’s leadership, noting that he was striving to “build a better future for generations to come.”

    He said there were lots of Nigerians in his country “who add much value,” assuring that the headwinds of the recent past in the relationship “are now behind us.”

    According to him, “We want to secure, deepen and strengthen the association for the future. We have a lot in common. We may be taking small steps, but they are leading somewhere.”

    On proposed investments in Nigeria, Alnahyan said it would be a win-win situation, “which would bring hope and opportunities for people in both countries. We want to come and add quality and value.”

    Adesina said the Minister equally commended the Nigerian government for its robust tackling of violent extremism.

  • Nigeria education system producing unemployable persons – FG

    Nigeria education system producing unemployable persons – FG

    The Federal Government has said the country’s education system, over the years, produced graduates with no generic and essential skills needed for global opportunities and responsibilities.

    It blamed the curricula used in teaching in schools, particularly at tertiary institutions, and students’ poor interest in marketable skills and other requirements of the workplace as largely responsible for the crisis.

    Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, who stated this at the National Technical and Vocational Education and Training Conference (TVET), Abuja, lamented the fact that many people were losing interest in TVET which could have devastating effect on the economy.

    The conference sponsored by German government, SKYE and other stakeholders was meant to provide opportunity for all stakeholders within the TVET sector to jointly work on TVET reform process in order to provide better vocational education for the young people in Nigeria.

    “The project has four components which are Technical College Intervention, Technical Teachers Training and Production, Informal Apprenticeship Training and Project Management, Coordination and Execution.

    “Nigeria is still faced with the challenges of skills gaps, especially in the area of technical and vocational fields which need to be addressed adequately. These challenges did not come overnight, but as a result of long time neglect and poor management.”

    Head of Programme, Skills Development for Youth Employment (SKYE), Hans Ludwig Bruns, said Nigeria is faced with tremendous challenges in terms of sustainable job creation and productivity.

    He said: “the high number of unemployment and underemployment have become major socioeconomic challenges over the past decade. It’s connected to the issue of skills development, which is interlinked to the challenges of adjusting TVET policies, regulations, and implementation.”

  • Nigeria spends more money servicing debts, NASS, subsidy than on education – Ex-Kano Emir Sanusi

    Nigeria spends more money servicing debts, NASS, subsidy than on education – Ex-Kano Emir Sanusi

    A former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Lamido Sanusi, has slammed the Federal Government for failing to prioritise education in the country.

    According to him, one out of every six children are out of school in Nigeria.

    He said this at the 27th National Economic Summit in Abuja on Tuesday, adding that the leadership has to understand the need for development, especially in the education sector.

    “Where you are dealing with a country where 40% of the population is living in extreme poverty or 1 out of every 6 children in the world are out of school in this country, you cannot fix this problem without having a leadership that understands what development is,” the ex-CBN governor said.

    “Where are we spending our money? Does the Nigerian state even consider development as a critical priority? Forget the noise; where are we spending our money?

    “We spend more money on debt service, fuel subsidy, overheads, and the National Assembly than on education. We’re spending less money on education and healthcare than countries like Ghana are spending. We’re spending less money on R&D than countries like Kenya and Rwanda,” he added.

    According to him, if Nigeria does not understand that development is about human beings, everything will fall by the wayside.

    “So, the biggest accelerator is political; having a political leadership that understands that the state should be a developmental state and not a populist state,” he explained.