Kebbi's Own Varsity
By Tosin Omoniyi
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Kebbi State establishes its own university as part of its way of managing the success of its campaign for mass literacy
Adamu Aliero, governor of Kebbi State is determined to transform the educational sector in that state in a bid to actualise his vision of qualitative education in the state. To this end, the governor has decided to establish the Kebbi State University. It will be sited in Aliero town.
The University is expected to cost seven billon naira. The governor said that already this amount has been set aside by the state government. The government has even entered into an agreement with the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, UK, for the training of 30 selected graduates with first and second degrees in science teacher education. They will form part of the pioneer academic staff of the institutions.
Aliero told Newswatch that he would like the university to take off this year and added that his main reason for the establishment of the State-owned university was to return the state to the path of educational glory. He said that it was a promise he hoped to fulfill before the end of his tenure. He said the state government was ready to abide by the criteria set for them by the National Universities Commission, NUC. "The panel on the proposed university will ensure that it meets the NUC standard and criteria as well as advise the government on how to ensure that the university is run on a sound footing," he said. The governor explained that he would wish Kebbi State to continue to be the beacon of hope for education in the entire north.
Abdulahi Bagudo, commissioner for education, commended the governor for according priority to the education sector of the state to a point that every parent and guardian in the state now considers education a necessity. He said that the university would be formidable and credible, and also serve as a primary science teacher resource base in the country.
He said it would also focus on, among other things, science teacher education, computer, information technology and agriculture. "The state's endeavours in education have exposed it to the need for investment in science teacher education in the country," he said.
But the opposition in the state are questioning the citing of the proposed university in the governor's home town. However, Bagudo described such people as armchair critics. According to him "those who chose Aliero town took into consideration many things including the overall interest of the state."
In 1999, Kebbi State was rated the second most educationally backward state in the federation. The educational system then was in shambles. The structures and facilities had collapsed. In some cases, schools were closed and teachers abandoned teaching for more rewarding jobs.
But six years after, the story has changed considerably, everything about the educational system has taken a new turn. Enrollment figures went up, even surpassed the government's projections. Primary and secondary schools are bursting at their seams with pupils and students. The government's campaign eventually succeeded in winning over parents and guardians towards making the education of their children and wards a priority. The investment in the rehabilitation, refurbishing and renovation of old and neglected schools and building of new schools has made the pupils, students, and teachers to proudly identify with the school system and restore full confidence in them.
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