Kebbi govt drafts guidelines for operation of private schools

The Kebbi Government on Thursday, says it has commenced the drafting of policy guidelines for the establishment and operation of private schools in the state.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Hajiya Rafaatu Hammani, made this known during stakeholders meeting in Birnin Kebbi for the production of state policy on private schools.

She said that the ministry was worried over the unregulated activities of private schools in the state, stressing the need to regulate both their establishment and operations.

Hammani lamented that the state lacked a working document on private schools, adding that the situation had paved way for the proliferation of unregulated private schools in the state.

“Many people just wake up and turn their garage, store, houses and even their shops to private schools.

“These so-called private schools charge parents huge amount of money.

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“They lack qualified teachers and standard facilities to operate the schools. This is detrimental to the educational system in the state.

“For now, we don’t even know how many private schools we have in the state,” Hammani said.

According to her, when the policy is in place, it will enable the ministry to have authentic data on private schools.

The permanent secretary added that the draft would map out standard procedures for the establishment of private schools and complement the provision of quality education by public schools in the state.

Earlier, the ministry’s Director, Quality Assurance, Alhaji Ibrahim Bena, told the stakeholders that the motive for the meeting was to have an all-inclusive working document for operations of private schools.

“We are working hard to have a working document on private schools, so we need your input to help us come up with a draft before the final policy,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the stakeholders include representatives from KUDA, Ministry of Environment, NGOs, CSOs, traditional rulers and security agencies, among others.

(NAN)