UBE: N2bn counterpart fund paid to UBEC in 4 years — Niger govt

THE Niger State government has disclosed that it paid a total of N2 billion as counterpart funds to the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) in Abuja from 2019 to date to access the Federal Government matching grant for effective and efficient implementation of the Universal Basic Education in the state.

Chairman of the Niger State Universal Basic Education Board (NSUBEB), Mr Saidu Ibrahim, made this known while addressing journalists in Minna, saying that “this has helped in the delivery of more and effective service in the state.”

Speaking on enrollment, he revealed that a total of 224,879 out-of-school children consisting of pupils and students have so far returned to the classrooms in the state.

Ibrahim noted that 150 projects were executed within the year under review with the establishment of additional 24 schools in both primary and junior secondary schools as well as four modern science primary schools as pilot schemes aimed at catching them young.

He reiterated the commitment to restore confidence in the public schools in the state, saying that the government is also prioritising training and retraining of its workforce for efficient monitoring and supervision.

He further disclosed that the over 200 schools closed down due to insecurity are being reopened gradually.

The SUBEB chairman expressed disappointment over the challenges and liabilities inherited, but with the vigour and team spirit of the management they had been surmounted, just as issues such as salary arrears, among others had been resolved.

He commended the enabling environment created by Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, to thrive in its mandates, especially towards the Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA) to address the out-of-school children, almajir and girl-child education, among others.

Ibrahim explained that the priority of the board in 2023 will be targeted towards supervision and monitoring of projects in schools to ensure standards and that the pupils get quality teaching through  aggressive monitoring to achieve value for money.