The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has called for increased collaboration among global stakeholders to build a more effective, equitable and resilient education system so as to tackle learning poverty and improve access to inclusive and quality education.
Obaseki gave the charge in commemoration of the fourth International Day of Education, marked by the United Nations and its sister agencies, with the theme ‘Changing Course, Transforming Education’.
The governor assured that his government will continue to deepen ongoing reforms in the state’s education sector, ensuring to provide the right infrastructure, technology and manpower for improved access to quality education across the state.
According to him, “Today, as we mark the fourth International Day of Education, it is imperative to reiterate the need for a more resilient and equitable education system to tackle learning poverty, improve access to quality education and reduce the global out-of-school population.
“Like other sectors, education suffered a huge gap during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the closure of schools, universities, and other educational institutions, excluding about 268 million children from school.
“This, not only necessitates the urgent need to rethink education considering its role in achieving a safe and sustainable future, but is a call for improved collaboration among world leaders and global stakeholders to strengthen and enhance education systems for the future.”
Obaseki, who stated that the government is focusing on basic education and restoring quality into its basic educational system, noted that children in primary schools in Edo State today now learn three times more than they used to learn with the old pedagogue.
He said the World Bank acknowledged this consequential progress in addressing Foundational Literacy and Numeracy defects in Edo students, adding, “Edo today is ranked as one of the five nationals and sub-nationals in the world, leading the charge in tackling learning poverty. We have the lowest number of out-of-school children in Nigeria on account of our reforms.”
Noting that his administration has launched and recruited teachers under the EdoSTAR Teaching Fellows Programme to ensure quality teaching and learning in public schools in the state, Obaseki said Edo has put in place the necessary infrastructure and institutions to train teachers in the use of technology, which will enable them to train children and imbue in them the culture of technology from a tender age.“We plan to deepen ongoing reforms in the state’s education sector, build the capacity of our teachers to domesticate the EdoBEST model, maintain physical infrastructure across schools in the state as well as intensify rebuilding structures, processes, and equipment at our tertiary institutions, among others,” Obaseki reassured.
