Niger establishes teachers development institute

No fewer than 300 boys and girls from 274 wards of the 25 Local Governments of Niger State were at the weekend offered provisional admission into the newly established Niger State’s Teachers Professional Development Institute, situated at Mararaba Dandaodu village in Munya Local Government Area of the state.

The new students, who had been provided with boarding facilities free-of-charge in the institute were said to have been picked on merits from their respective Local Governments across the state, after they had performed very well in their Junior Secondary School (JSS) promotional examinations.

According to the chairman of the 23-members implementation committee of the institute, set up by the state government to prepare the beneficiaries for the in-service training, capacity development of teachers, as well as managing the school, Mrs Dije Bala, a foremost educationist in the state, the brain behind the establishment of the institute was the incumbent state Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello with a view of improving the quality of teachers in the state.

In an interactive session with journalists recently at the school premises, she said that the state government had initially nurtured the idea of establishing the institute across the three senatorial districts of the state namely: in Agaie, Zone A, with another one in Zone C, in Mokwa / Kainji axis of the state, but had to commence the programme  in Mararaba  Dandaodu in Munya Local Government which is situated in Zone B, area of the state.

She said so far, the governor had approved the sum of N1.5billion to be expended on the institute, while the sum of N200 million had been expended on the newly established Teachers Professional Development Institute by her committee, which included the students welfare packages; ranging from feeding, hostel accommodation, beds and beddings, pairs of school uniforms, house wears, buckets, aluminum plates, cutleries and their ceremonial dresses and their school fees

She noted that all of the expenditure was being taken care of by the state government in conjunction with the chairmen of the 25 Local Governments in the state.

The institute, according to her, was being provided with a standby generator set, state-of-the-arts ICT centre, Biology and Chemistry laboratories, a well-equipped library, boys and girls hostels, dinning room, bore hole and overhead tanks, as well as well furnished classrooms with chairs and tables, among others.

Mrs Bala also stated that the students were to commence their studies in the institute from SS1-SS3, adding that the school offers Science and Arts subjects, but with emphasis on ‘Principles and Practices of Education,’ as well as Methods of Teaching, among others.

“And on the completion of their studies here, they will proceed  to the Colleges of Education to commence the mandatory three years training as Teachers, after which they will be issued with National Council of Education Certificates. Similarly they can also seek admission into the Universities of Education for their professional trainings as teachers.

“And throughout their studies at the tertiary institutions for their training as teachers , the Niger State government will be responsible for payment of their school fees , meaning they would be offered free education from now till the end of their trainings as teachers and I can assure you, it is going to be a continued exercise in the state by successive administrations irrespective of the political parties the government belongs to for the overall benefits of the indigenes of the state, said Hajiya Dije Bala.