Ayodele Olalere
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, has said his administration will continue to prioritise the development of the education sector in the state through an increase in the education budget .
The governor who was, in Abuja, for a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on ongoing strike by Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) spoke, on Tuesday, via zoom at the opening day of a two-day 2022 Lagos State Education Summit held at Eko Hotel and Suites with the theme ‘ Creating a Sustainable Fit-for-Purpose Education Model’.
He was, however, represented physically by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mrs. Folasade Jaji.
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Governor Sanwo-Olu said his administration has completed over 1000 education projects in the last three years, adding improved education is one of the legacies he wished to leave behind by the time he left office.
He further said the Summit came at the right time when the state has recorded improvement in the West African Examination Council, WAEC, results from 40% to 80%.
“Education is not just a pillar in one of our THEMES agenda, it’s one of the dividends of democracy and one of the cardinal objectives of our administration. We see it as one of the tools that can end poverty in our system.
“We are not paying lip service to education, we are taking it seriously. Education has continued to receive an increased budget in our administration.
“I am happy this summit will be a platform where we can digest what we are presently doing,” the governor said.
The governor added that his administration is looking at improving the welfare and needs of the teachers, as well as working with private schools to improve the education sector. He further said the Ekoexcel Initiative is one of the major success stories of his administration in the education sector.
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“We believe we can do more. At the end of the Summit, we can have a real conversation with the private schools and work with them to ensure we get more out of Out-Of-School children.
Commissioner for Education, Mrs. Folasade Adefisayo, said Nigeria has a lot to do in improving the education sector, adding the Summit was organised to find solutions to the problems of education in Nigeria.
She said Lagos is an important player in education in Nigeria being the sixth largest economy in Africa.
“This Summit is about audacity. Some of the outcomes of this Summit will contribute to the process of solving education problems in Nigeria.
“The focus is not on the problems but now we want to come up with solutions. We want practical ideas that the state can implement. We are ready to listen.”
The state has implemented 210 out of 220 resolutions since inception of the administration. We have employed over 7000 teachers to replace our fast aging teachers, Lagos State teachers are the best paid in Nigeria and we have executed 1,400 projects,” she said.
She also said the state is making use of technology in teaching as shown in the Ekoexcel Initiative.
Vice Chancellor of Pan Atlantic University, Nigeria, Prof. Enase Okonedo, in her lecture, lamented the decay in the education sector, saying the knowledge based system which Nigeria now practices is no longer appropriate.
She said the system only allowed the students to read for exams and pass after which they forgets what they have been taught, thereby failing to prepare them for practical application of what they have learnt
“Education transforms society. We need to invest in our future. We need character, we need values. Education can improve the socio-economic life of its people.
“Education can give a sense of justice and freedom, it strengthens the mind. Lagos is deemed to be a heavy market for private education so it’s necessary we begin to look at education as a process of training the mind.
“We are not educating for now, we are educating for the future. Our education system should prepare the students not just to survive.
“We must change the system now so that our youth can succeed in changing Nigeria.
“I urge stakeholders to see education as investments. Our youth deserves an education that can make them thrive in an ever changing world.”