Kaduna committed to quality education – Commissioner

The Kaduna State Government has reaffirmed its commitment to reducing the number of out-of-school children and expanding access to education in the state.

According to the Commissioner for Education, Professor Mohammed Sani-Bello, the administration is working tirelessly to ensure that every child in the state has access to quality education.

The Commissioner, who spoke at a Quarterly Ministerial Press Briefing in Kaduna on Wednesday, insisted that no child would be denied access to quality education across the state.

He said, “we are committed to providing quality education to our children, and we are achieving this through our policies and programmes.

“At the basic education level under SUBEB, more than 600 classrooms have been constructed since the beginning of this administration, and quite a number are being renovated.”

The commissioner also disclosed that 62 new secondary schools have been built under the AGILE project, with plans to construct 50 more schools before the second anniversary of the current administration in the state.

“The era of having students studying in an environment that is not conducive for learning has been averted,” he said.

In addition, the six science secondary schools funded by the Islamic Development Bank are now operational, with over 2,000 students enrolled.

“That project started 16 years ago, but it was stalled and abandoned. It is this administration that completed the schools,” Sani-Bello said.

The commissioner attributed the success of the administration’s education policies to Governor Sani’s commitment to education.

“The governor’s commitment to education is evident in his first Executive Order, which reduced tuition fees in all state-owned tertiary institutions by 40%,” he said. 

According to Sani-Bello, the reduction in tuition fees has increased student enrollment at Kaduna State University (KASU), Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, and the College of Education Gidan-Waya.

The commissioner also disclosed that Kaduna State-owned tertiary institutions have introduced new courses that have passed through the resource verification of regulatory agencies.

He said, “before the arrival of this administration, many students had to leave tertiary institutions in Kaduna State for tertiary institutions in neighbouring states. Some completely left school because of the fee regime that was imposed by the last administration.

“KASU courses were verified by the National University Commission (NUC), while those of Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic were accredited by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE). The National Commission of Colleges of Education accredited the courses of the College of Education Gidan Waya.”

Sani-Bello further revealed that the Uba Sani administration is committed to reducing the number of out-of-school children by building more schools to expand access.

“The Kaduna State initiative is the first of its kind, and it is being supported by five development partners, including the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), Education Above All (EAA), Save the Children International (SCI), and UNICEF,” he said.

According to the commissioner, the Bureau of Statistics has mapped out Kaduna State and identified communities where there are no schools.

“Under that project, we are going to have 102 new schools and over 200 existing schools will be renovated. The aim of the project is to ensure that no child treks more than one kilometre to get access to a school,” he said.

Sani-Bello also disclosed that the Special School for Gifted Children at Millennium City is 90% complete, while the Tsangaya Bilingual Schools Project has been significantly expanded with UBEC-IsDB support.

The commissioner attributed the success of the administration’s education policies to the governor’s commitment to education.

“Governor Uba Sani is committed to providing quality education to our children, and we are achieving this through our policies and programmes,” he said.