It is an ineluctable fact that benefits of education are societal and personal. It is also observed that any society with high rates of education completion have lower crime, better overall health, and civic involvement. Beyond the need for workers to fill specific jobs, there are grander reasons to encourage people to be educated, being the reasons the executive governor of Kebbi state, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu is prioritizing the education of his people.
More so, education leads to economic prosperity in the global marketplace. One of the most important effects education has on society is giving the people who live in a society the skills they need to compete in the global marketplace, and the skills they need to produce technological goods or services that can be sold on the open market.
Upon assumption of office, and having realized the important and benefits of education to the growth of any society such as Kebbi State. It is on record that the educational sector in Kebbi had previously suffered serious neglect by previous administration but today under the leadership of Bagudu, the sector has witnessed tremendous turn around, creating a good atmosphere for learning and teaching process.
However, the change mantra of Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu has extended its olive branch to the sector. The story is now a happy one. In the last five years, the Kebbi State Government undertook massive renovation and reconstruction of new and existing primary, secondary and tertiary institutions across the state. It will be recalled that, even before he was sworn in as the governor of the state, he made numerous unscheduled visits to primary and secondary schools, as well as some tertiary institutions in the state, with a view of having fast hand information and personal assessment of the schools in the state.
In his Inaugural speech on the 29th May, 2015, he noted that the sector is in shambles, schools over stretched without qualified teachers and structural infrastructure like classes, toilets and dormitories are in ruins over the years.
To demonstrate his determination to overhaul the educational sector in the state, education received the highest allocation in his maiden budget. Governor Bagudu doled out over 5 billion Naira for the renovation of both primary and secondary schools in the state, including setting aside additional funds for the purchase of assorted learning materials in that same year to 2016.
Governor Bagudu is one of the governor not only in the northern part of the country but in Nigeria at large that has continuously and physical inspected schools facilities.
Keeping his electioneering campaigns promises, the Governor set the ball rolling in the educational sector by embarking on massive public schools rehabilitation to the tune of billions of naira, with the aim of improving and changing the educational sector, as well as making schools students’ and teachers’ friendly for learning.
Since he assumed office as the number one citizen of the state, he had awarded a contract for the renovation of 25 secondary schools across the state. The schools cut across the six zones; Argungu, Birnin Kebbi, Bunza, Jega, Yauri, and Zuru. To further enhance teaching and learning. In 2019, Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu also approved the recruitment of three thousand (300) teachers for schools across the state. Girls secondary Schools across the state from each of the 4 senatorial zones were provided with new busses to facilitate their movement, to take part in sports and extracurricular activities, within and outside the state.
More so, as responsible leader, since he assumed office, Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu has ensured the prompt payment of scholarship to students studying at various institutions of higher learning, within and outside the state, including the payment of WAEC and NECO examination fees for secondary School students of the state, this is an effort that the residents of the state considered as kind hearted nature of him.
It is also on record that; the Kebbi Government had upgraded three higher institutions which are under the Ministry for Higher Education. The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry for Higher Education in the State, Dr. Isa Muhammad Sama, confirmed the development. The three institutions upgraded are Adamu Augie College of Education, Argungu, the Kebbi State School of Nursing and Midwifery, Birnin Kebbi and the School of Health Technology, Jega.
Adubi writes from Kaduna
