Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal has declared a state of emergency on education, pledging to overhaul the sector’s alarming decline.
In a statewide broadcast on Tuesday, Lawal cited the severe neglect of the education sector, affecting all levels from primary to tertiary institutions.
He emphasized that the declaration aligns with his campaign promises to reform education, build and rehabilitate schools, provide adequate facilities, and train teachers.
“This is in line with his campaign manifesto, where he made promises to the people of Zamfara to implement policies and programs aimed at reforming the education sector, building and rehabilitating public schools, providing adequate educational facilities, and training and retraining of the existing staff to enhance their capacity,” he said.
Lawal outlined his administration’s initiatives to address the crisis, including the construction and renovation of 245 schools across the state, the provision of desks for pupils and students, and the equipping of schools with tables and chairs for teachers.
“All teachers and education managers will receive subject-specific training and retraining.
“To maintain a minimum level of quality in education delivery, the government has suspended the licenses of private education providers in the state. This ensures that private schools meet the required standards for providing quality education.
“Furthermore, in pursuit of quality education, my government has approved sponsoring 50% of Zamfara State indigenes admitted into Federal Government Girls College Gusau for the 2023-2024 academic sessions.”
“The State Government has paid the National Examination Council (NECO) fees for all Zamfara public school candidates who sat for the 2023 exams. Similarly, certificates for the candidates who sat for the 2019 NECO examinations have been collected and distributed to the students.”
“The results of the NECO exams taken in 2020, 2021, and 2022 will be released to students before the end of this month. The results were previously withheld by the NECO due to non-payment by the previous administration. However, with our intervention, students who graduated during those years can now access their results and apply to different tertiary institutions for admission,” he said.
Lawal reiterated the government’s commitment to changing the narrative of underperformance and emphasized that Zamfara will thrive across all sectors. He expressed his determination to rescue education and ensure a brighter future for Zamfara’s children.
