Lagos paid over N4.2bn to WAEC in four years — Commissioner

In fulfillment of its free education policy, the Lagos State government has paid over N4.2 billion to the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) in the last four years of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration.

The money is to cover the exam registration fees for all SS3 students, totaling 254,846 in the state-owned schools, to sit for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) free of charge between 2020 and 2023.

The state government has also approved the payment of another N1.57 billion to WAEC to cover this year’s May/June WASSCE for all its students in terminal class, totaling 58,188.

The state’s Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Mr. Jamiu Alli-Balogun, made this disclosure on Thursday at the ministerial press briefing organized by the state government to commemorate the first anniversary of the second term of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration.

The state’s commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotosho, as well as top officials from the state ministry of education and its agencies including SUBEB, LASTVEB, and TESCOM were all in attendance.

Speaking further, Alli-Balogun gave the total number of public schools at primary and secondary education levels in the state as 1,723, with an additional nine newly established in the last four years, all to cater to over one million pupils and students.

He declared that the provision of quantitative and quality education not only at basic and secondary education levels but also at the tertiary level is one of the topmost priorities of Mr. Sanwo-Olu’s administration for the people of the state.

He said the governor and his team particularly believe that it is only when people have access to quality education that they can easily escape ignorance and poverty and then live a quality life.

He said the state government had intensified efforts and upgraded most of the school infrastructures including classrooms, staff rooms, libraries, laboratories, ICT rooms, toilet facilities, and so forth, and also provided new ones where necessary and recruited more teachers to ensure real learning and teaching are taking place.

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The commissioner also pointed out that the state government is equally taking the school safety initiative very seriously by ensuring that both students and school workers are safe in and around schools across the state.

As of today, no public school is without perimeter fencing, and devices such as CCTV have also been installed in many of them, with walkie-talkies distributed to school security personnel.

He said the state had also reviewed the curriculum, including approved textbooks, and also trained and retrained teachers to ensure they are in tune with the economic reality of this time and global best practices.

He said the state government had equally distributed mobile devices with learning materials to no fewer than 18,912 SS2 students to aid their online and self-learning as well as research activities.

He said the state government doesn’t in any way also joke with the welfare of its education workforce, including teachers, such that they get their salaries paid latest by the 23rd of every month and those who distinguished themselves in their roles are sumptuously rewarded with various gifts, including brand new cars.

He said the state is also serious about its “Zero Project” approach of not leaving any child behind by taking out-of-school children off the street and enrolling them in schools.

He disclosed that about 23,000 of such children had so far been kitted by government and enrolled in various public schools in the last four to five years.

Alli-Balogun, however, lauded the efforts of private schools in the state, saying their contributions to the provision of quality education to the people of the state are commendable.

He pointed out that even though the state government always encourages them by providing an enabling environment for them to thrive, they must also abide by the rules and regulations guiding their operations.

He disclosed that a total of an additional 462 private nursery/primary, 251 secondary, and seven vocational schools, all totaling 270, were approved between the year 2020 and now.

He said the government had resolved to streamline the approval process, particularly to reduce the timeline so that more schools can be approved without compromising standards.

He, however, declared that even at that, the state government would not hesitate to close down any school that contravenes laws, noting that 12 schools were shut in the last four years.

He said they were closed down over safety infractions and illegal operations. He urged private school operators to always reach out to the government, especially his office, for dialogue over any issue that bothers on their operations. He emphasized that the state government really appreciates their contributions.

He, therefore, promised that the government would continue to provide an enabling environment for them to operate while on its part invest substantially in the sector. He urged development partners, corporate bodies, philanthropists, and individuals not to rest on their oars but to continue to support the government to move the sector forward.