Education

Vital literacy indicators reveal a deplorable condition in the Nigerian educational system.

Indeed, the adult literacy rate is embarrassing, while the number of out-of-school children has reached an all-time high rate.

Trailing the falling standard of education at all levels, is the ever-increasing rate of drop-outs today.

With particular reference to the Primary, Secondary and Tertiary levels of education, cultism, gangster ism and prostitution have become the popular choice for undergraduates, students and pupils in educational institutions across the states of the federation.

Shortage of qualified teachers, lack of teaching aids, recreational facilities in schools and basic infrastructure are just a few among the sore points of schools in Nigeria.

Of serious worry are the poor sanitation, overcrowding in classrooms, poor conditions of service for teachers, which has resulted in the poor quality of teaching and poor quality of classroom products.

All put together, have become negative signposts of the school environment. 

Sadly, poor educational management, a reflection of the poor inter-sectoral allocation, multiplicity of agencies with duplicated functions and inadequate coordination, have all made education administration in most states questionable and fraudulent.

The weak support for education by governments at all levels is a manifestation of the ineptitude of government officials.

The government’s deliberate neglect of the management of the education sector may eventually result in the total collapse of the public education system.

The shortcomings of government have heightened the stakes for private investors and made the education sector very lucrative.

Sadly, the complicity of the government and society, over the years, has prompted the uncontrollable behavior and acts of young people particularly in Ibadan, capital of Oyo state and other major cities in Nigeria.

Surprisingly, the adults watch helplessly as this category of Nigerians drift into the irredeemable circle.

With the profit motive as the major emphasis and driving force, educational institutions are now germinating like pure water factories in every nook and cranny of Nigeria, while at the same time, such institutions are turning out educationally unacceptable products.

With all these in mind, Nigerians are urgently asking :

Can governments at all levels make education available, relevant, accessible and affordable to all Nigerians ?

Can governments at all levels ensure immediate and long term social and economic returns from education ?

Are public educational institutions, considering their present state, competent to produce a skilled workforce ?  Answers to these questions are in the public domain with stakeholders vigorously avoiding these questions.

The future seems bleak for children and the youth in Nigeria as the cost of education at all levels goes beyond reach. 

The leadership at all levels may not be sensitive to the difficulties the citizens are passing through to meet the increasing cost of education.

Sadly, the children of these leaders are in choice schools around the globe.

Democracy ensures that citizens have access to uninhibited and quality education.

But in this case, the cost of education may not justify the service delivery in the education sector.

Donate

In every part of Nigeria today, most children leave school without attaining these standards.

The present system of education at all levels of government is not only bad for the children but also for the teachers. The teaching profession has been debased by the government and the unimpressive attitude of the teachers.

Parents have a major duty to their children, but most parents habitually neglect this major duty.

Untrained teachers and bad methods of teaching, projects by contractors that were not inspected with adequate motive, un-revised or ill-revised policies and the complete absence of all organizations of schools in relation to one another constitute an unspecified number of evils of public and private schools in Nigeria.

The allocations in the budgets of the Federal and State governments over the years to the education sector has had little or no impact on the sector.

Most public primary and secondary school students learn in environments that are not encouraging in Nigeria.  

 The facilities have been stretched to obsolete conditions as a result of improper planning by the government at all levels. 

Considering the dilapidated toilet facilities in several of these schools and the absence of potable and drinkable water, the potential outbreak of an epidemic cannot be ruled out. Teachers are no longer dedicated to duty due to their nightmarish working conditions.

 Cultism has taken root in most of these schools, while ''armed robbers'' in school uniforms dot the nooks and crannies of every part of the country. 

Of worry, is the lack of sincerity on the part of the government in the implementation of programs and policies. 

On the part of private schools, moral decadence, which is a major feature in public schools, is the issue, while examination malpractices and fraud are also noticeable signposts. Furthermore, the attitude of the government and people in a number of states in the country downplays the reality of the coronavirus pandemic, while the present state of several schools in these states, the non-availability of potable water, and the dilapidated facilities could expose students and teachers alike to serious health hazards, the coronavirus pandemic inclusive.  Our worry also is the fact that several communities in Nigeria are under siege by various categories of criminals. 

The sight of young boys, in the midst of adults, smoking Indian hemp is now commonplace, majorly at primary schools without perimeter fencing. 

In addition, young girls have now taken to prostitution on the prompting of their mothers and guardians to make ends meet. A visit to several beer parlors, ''Ogogoro'' joints scattered all over the country should be instructive. Such communities include Molusi, Solanke, Oyegbami, Oshodi, Olorunsogo, Aluko/Barracks, Felele, Scout Camp, and others in Ibadan, Oyo state. If an urgent step is not taken to salvage the almost hopeless situation, millions of Nigerian children may no longer have a place in a sane society.  

As primary and secondary schools in Nigeria prepare to resume for the third term, the Chief Executive Officer of KEAABS Oil and Gas Limited, Port-Harcourt, Rivers state, Mrs. Hannah Adefunke Mujakperuo, a master’s degree holder and doctoral student, in this interview, advised the government at all levels to do all that is necessary for girls to accomplish.

Excerpts:

Schools are about to resume for the third term. What is your advice to the government?

 Girls do not deserve to be exploited, but rather protected and nurtured. 

The social, economic and political situation in Nigeria has impacted negatively on girls.

However, it is disturbing to note that parents and guardians are now openly supporting female children to embrace prostitution as a means to an end. This is dangerous for society.

The government at all levels should do all that is possible to ensure that girls have unhindered access to quality education by making provision for the needed facilities, addressing the issue of shortage of teachers and renovating dilapidated infrastructure in schools.

It is also very important that counselors are functional in the schools to guide girls on career choices. Girls have a role to play in the future of the nation. Everything must be done for the girls to acquire a quality education.

Students have been advised to focus on their studies to achieve greatness in life.

This advice was given on Thursday by the daughter of the late Premier of the Western region, Dr. Bimbo Akintola at the 2024 Samuel Ladoke Akintola Memorial lecture and Award Presentation in Ibadan, Nigeria.

''You are all students who will become very important people in life, read hard, study hard, and thank God for everything. We really wanted students to be here today because History was taken out of the education curriculum and later returned. History is very important. My children, students, teachers are also very important.

''My father, Samuel Ladoket Akintola was a teacher. He was a father who would go miles to see each and every one of us through our education. He excelled, but he was not appreciated. I pray that my children will have such things said about you. May your teachers be blessed,'' Dr. Akintola stated.

The attitude, behavior and activities of millions of Nigerians are crucial to the visibility of the positive impact of education on their lives.

Even when the whole annual budget, once the needful by Those-in-authority is not done, salvaging the deteriorated standard of education would just be an exercise in futility.

The open display of lawlessness, indiscipline, criminality and evil in different parts of the country are pointers to the unwavering fact that education is yet to achieve its purpose in Nigeria.

We invite students between the ages of 14 to 17 to write  an article with the title : My expectations from the Government from May 29 and Beyond.(minimum 250 words).

The best five articles will be published on this site(ensure to include your profile(minimum of 50 words).

Entries are free and should be sent to-

1)federationews2day@gmail.com

2)solomon1day@gmail.com

Before 12 noon on Monday May 8th, 2023

The funding of education is a major challenge in Nigeria.

Sadly, education funding has been reduced drastically over the years.

In addition, the poor remuneration of teaching staff at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels has also contributed to the deterioration of education.

Furthermore, the attitude of parents and guardians towards their children and wards' education is nothing to write home about, including the low quality of training teaching staff pass through have both contributed to the worrisome state of education in the country.

The quest for wealth is now the focus of parents and guardians at the detriment of the future of their children and wards.

All the above mentioned have impacted negatively on the academic performance of pupils and students at all levels of education.

It is high time the Federal Government increases the budget funding for education to the 26 per cent benchmark recommended by UNESCO.

Above all, the government should strengthen institutions to eradicate systemic corruption and also ensure that the recruitment of teaching staff is transparent based on merit.

Lastly, the trend is now to promote students who fail to enmasse. This is not good for education. Those who do not exhibit the capacity and capability to learn should either be made to repeat or shown the way out.

Dr. Amenaghawon is of the Department of Communication and Language Arts, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.

The general elections have been described as a good opportunity to establish functional education in Nigeria.

This assertion was made on Tuesday by the Founder, Spiritual head and Grand Imam of Shafaudeen-in-Islam Worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke in his address titled, ''SHAPING THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION IN NIGERIA-THE FUTURE IS NOW'' at the 3oth Annual Shafaudeen-in-Islam stakeholders' Conference in Ibadan, Nigeria.

''Functioanl education is deserved by a nation like Nigeria to promote inclusive society, civility and patirotism, credible leadership and good governance driven through zero tolerance to corruption and institutional indiscipline. Education will make us realize achieving this sanity-prone environment for development. Luckily for us, the 2023 general elections will avail us the opportunity to achieve this if we make give the right choice of a visionary leader that would be spirit led to operationalize democracy through justice and equity to propel Nigeria into peace and sustainable development and a safe and secured environment., Prof. Olagoke stated.

The Oyo state government recently announced the derecognition of 50 secondary schools in the state for examination malpractices. 26 of the schools are government owned while 24 are privately owned. The Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafaudeen-in-Islam Worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke in this piece expresses his views on the development.

Excerpt:

Examination calls for a process of strict invigilation and supervision underlined by the highest level of discipline to protect the integrity of the alumni of every school. The desire of parents to have their children in a choice of professions and universities, the pressure on children to pursue courses in which they have no aptitude, pressure on teachers who want to gain favor, overcrowded sitting arrangements, parental upbringing, peer group effects, mushroom schools promising good results among others all contribute to examination malpractices. These fundamental causative factors need to be addressed properly by stakeholders-parents, teachers, counselors and the media. If sensitization on the need to instill discipline in the conduct of examinations had been thorough, the shameful act would not have been so embarrassingly great. However, the truth of the matter is that mushroom private schools are endangering the quality of education in Oyo state. They go into partnership with registered schools to register WAEC candidates for examinations without thoroughly taking care of the needs of the students, rather they promise them assistance while writing examinations. Such schools end up indicting the host school that accommodated their students through their inappropriate measures to make their students pass WAEC conducted examinations and other examinations. Another area of serious concern which WAEC itself needs to tidy up is that these students are able to observe examination malpractices through their unholy association with business centers and web operators who sell WAEC questions and answers online with payments via transfers and recharge cards to have access to such questions and answers online. Host schools taking care of candidates from unregistered schools for WAEC or NECO take the risk of indictment because these schools adorn the uniforms of the accredited schools that have accommodated their students to write their WAEC examinations in their schools, giving no room for excuses that perpetrators of the malpractices are not students of the accredited schools, were the examinations were written. School authorities of accredited schools should learn a lot of lessons from this sad experience by putting in place compliance with the rules and regulations guiding education,-WAEC and others. Unregistered schools and those that are registered ones need to cooperate with the Ministry of Education, the government and WAEC on the guiding rules for conducting worthwhile, fraud-free examinations by sensitizing the teachers,students and members of the public on the implications, consequences and penalties. Generally, there is the need to note that leakages of WAEC questions and answers online usually takes place when school authorities connive and through online links share among students in the examinations. The prohibitive amount charged as fines is enough deterrent for offending schools. This should be a lesson for others who are yet to be detected. In the course of building, our nation we must all recognize with passion that the effect of examination malpractices on national development has always been very negative. This is visible in the quality of the educational manpower the country has produced while the educational system strives to inculcate a high level of discipline, diligence, morale and love for others. A country that has become notorious for examination malpractices loses credibility, as evident in the value of the certificates outside Nigeria. Individuals through fraudulent means in educational pursuit are likely to face on-the-job challenges of dismissal, termination, lose of positions, lack of self-confidence and eventual suffering and embarrassment. Products of examination malpractices offer the nation, prevalent bank failures, budiling collapses, economic sabotage vandalizm, kidnapping for ritual and ransome, drug trafficking, fak drug manufacturing and sales! Are these not practical effects of moral decadence emanating from examination malpractices? The fight against corruption will only be realized if examination malpractices are curtailed. Future leaders equipped with a system characterized by academic fraud and dishonesty would certainly manifest questionable behavior in any organization they find themselves. Those who passed examinations by cheating would cheat to get employed, have spouses and even to win elections through electoral violence or their sharp practices. Finally, we must realize that education is a right according to the United Nations Children's Fund(UNICEF). The government must, therefore, realize that education is the bedrock of every society for appropriate development. Let us all do the needful.

The government and every proprietor must invest heavily in the functional education of our children despite the current trend of development that dwells on global competitiveness and global best practices through such orientation, which will give learners and graduates of every school a wider view of the world where peace and development will dominate a purposeful educational goal.

To be able to achieve the above-mentioned updates, facility updates and security issues must be pursued with high assurance of a safe environment for the teachers and the children, including the young. It is sacrosanct to the provision of a conducive environment for learning through adequate funding, total quality assurance and standard attainment. Policy designs on these must be implemented now for a better Nigeria. The stakeholders including parents, government at all levels, schools, students, alumni associations, the media and others must walk the talk on the education enhancement needs without any delay for a better future. Let us realize that the goal of accreditation exercises for various disciplines in our schools and the global exercises for universities across the board is for education not to lose its focus objectives, quality and standards. Working towards achieving this is a challenging task for all nations. Alumni associations of schools must rise up to support the reinforcement needs of our schools for adequate funding to provide for facility updates, and motivate the teachers/lecturers for Nigerian schools to compete well with their counterparts abroad. Afterall, the nation will benefit better if schools are able to provide thoroughbred graduates that are well disicplined with passion to provide for the need of the people for opeace and development to give us safe and secured environment. Above all, let us motivate our teachers to walk the talk to promote knowledge economy. Let us jointly secure the future of our nation, Nigeria.

Prof. Olagoke delivered this lecture at the Shafudeen Group of Schools end of year 2021/2022 Academic Session party and 8th Valedictory sercvice

Free and compulsory education from the Primary and Secondary levels is a step in the right direction for those who know the value of education.
The renovation of dilapidated structures in public schools, the building of new classrooms, the provision of functional toilet facilities, water, and fencing all contribute to ensuring that pupils and students have quality education. 
Sadly, the stoppage of the payment of WAEC and NECO fees by some state governments, most especially in these times of insecurity and economic downturn, has denied indigent students the opportunity to be educated.

Indeed, the educational system in Nigeria is in deep crises, while vital, literacy indicators point to a deplorable condition.
Most of the schools, in the public and private sectors, have become breeding ground for criminals, trailed by an ever-increasing rate of school drop-outs.
The quality of education has fallen significantly at all levels, just as cultism, gangsterism, ritual killings, and the use of hard drugs have taken over space.
A number of teachers have contributed negatively to the sorry situation, even as the absence of adequate teaching aids and recreational facilities have worsened the troubled state of education in the country.
Poor management, the multiplicity of agencies with duplicated functions, and inadequate coordination are stumbling blocks to available, relevant, accessible, and affordable education, to all irrespective of social and economic status.
Considering the fact that illiterates constitute the majority of the population, immediate and long-term social and economic returns from education remain a mirage.
The question Nigerians have continued to ask is-Do state actors know the value of education?

The Federal Government has reviewed the years of service for teachers in Nigeria from 35 to 40 years and also the retirement age from 60 to 65 years of age, while at the same time introducing a new salary structure.
Even though a cross-section of Nigerians applauds the decision, several others believe that the new salary structure would be difficult to implement in several states. In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafudeen-in-Islam Worldwide,  Prof. Sabitu Olagoke opines that the Federal Government should make public the details of implementation and also introduce a Special  Teachers Pension Scheme. Excerpts :
Do you think the new salary structure for teachers in Nigeria, recently announced y the Federal Government and the adjustment of years of service and retirement age are realistic?
The new national teaching policy assigned and approved by President Muhammadu Buhari is an indication that better days await us in Nigeria, probably starting from this government. This is because the teaching service sector has been neglected over the years, making this crucial, fundamental, and primary mainstay of life to mankind highly unattractive for the lack of motivation for teachers, the profession has for long been producing the poorest of the poor of our population with the consequence of the graduates becoming touts and social miscreants.
Components that absorb half-baked products of our schools always go into the loss of goodwill except for train the trainers' cycles of workshops, seminars, and conferences. If the government now feels that it as imperative to sign and approve the new national teaching policy all of us must applaud them and stand by them for proper implementation otherwise it may become another white elephant project.
For example, the introduction of the special teachers' salary scale is long overdue, various governments had always given Nigerians a false sense of hope.
The posers that follow range as 1)Feasibility of executing the project without discontinuity, considering that many states are yet to start paying the new minimum wage of mere N30,000. Gratuities of many teachers are yet to be paid in several states while pension challenges have led to the suffering of many with the consequence of losing some fo them.
This is why the Government must intimate Nigerians on how it plans to go about this policy to give the citizenry maximum assurance.
On the issue of the retirement age from 60 to 65, the government ought to have conducted an opinion poll for correct statistics to justify the new policy.

Suffice it now to say that the government must reconsider the benefits of retiring at 60 or 70 as the nation may benefit from these human resources potentials in the face of the dynamics of activities expected in service. The teaching profession is glorious and fundamental to human growth and development which would affect positively,  proficiency in community service and active participation in national development. The new special salary scale for teachers will automatically ned to be supported by also introducing the Special Teachers' Pension Scheme.
Perusing all these,  if the government is determined to do it, the present allocation structure needs to be revisited to be in favor of the states and the Local Governments, considering the fact that the number of Primary and Secondary schools are far higher than the number of tertiary institutions we have in Nigeria for them to be able to cope Afterall.
The whole world is clamoring for Education For All(EFA) in the face of global best practices that demand standard quality.
The Federal Government has to put in place an effective monitoring mechanism that would give it the assurance for transparency and accountability through due process in procurement and every transaction.
The government must equally ensure that the teachers and students/pupils justify the new gesture that demands merit in certification. This is to allow our graduates to be attitudinally fit and professionally capable in the competitive market of labor justification.

The Kenyan Government  is considering reviewing the January 2021 resumption date of schools in the country.

The Education Cabinet Secretary, George Magoha, made this known  after a crisis meeting at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), attributed the development to decreasing cases of Covid-19 that suggest the curve may be flattening.

“I called this meeting today to engage the taskforce and various education stakeholders on the process of drafting a new proposal to be presented before the larger national education stakeholder’s conference that will be held on September 25.”

 “It is time to relook at earlier proposals regarding reopening of schools. We are looking at all aspects, but have not come to a consensus on when schools can reopen, or set any date,” said Prof Magoha.  “Between now and next week, the taskforce committee will work on finer details that will be interrogated by the larger stakeholders meeting,” Prof Magoha stated.

State Governments in Nigeria which have reopened schools in the heat of the coronavirus pandemic  have been called upon to commence tests for the coronavirus among students, teachers and other staff.

This call was made by the All Workers Convergence(AWC) through its National Coordinator, Comrade Andrew Emelieze, in a chat with Poverty Line.

‘’Now that some state Governments have reopened schools, it is very necessary for these governments to conduct COVID 19 tests among teachers, students and other staff in the various schools that have reopened in the states. This is what is expected of governments which project and are not ready to risk the lives of their people. As a matter of fact we need not remind these state governments to conduct the tests, if the intention of reopening schools was not to perform unnecessary experiment with our students or put their lives in jeopardy’’, Comrade Emelieze concluded.

Equity and Justice is not a priority in a sizable number of nations. Indeed. 

The April/ May 2020 Senior Secondary School Certificate examinations has been postponed, even though parents, guardians , teachers and school authorities have continued to express mixed feelings over the preparedness of students for the examinations. In most recent times a number of state Governments have expressed reservations over the poor performances of students it registered for the external examinations. This prompted some of these state Governments to withdraw their financial support, in terms of paying for the examination fees. In another breadth these state Governments are working round the clock to ensure that students from their states excel in the examination by all means. Sadly, students of a sizable number of schools in the country focus more on cybercafes and betting centers, while at the same time abandoning their primary aim of attending school. This has to a large extent negatively affected the prospects of improved examination results.

In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafudeen-in-Islam Worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke says the funadmental issues affecting the education sector should be addressee before there can be an improvement in the performances of students in external examinations. Excerpts :

How do you think the performances of students can be improved on in examinations conducted by the West African Examination Council(WAEC), considering the poor results in recent years ?

The poor performances of Nigerian students in WAEC conducted examinations as a West African issue led to the inauguration of the National Examination Council(NECO) without compromising the standard.

Luckily, the syllabi is based on the general curricula of education which every secondary school must comply with, right from the Junior Secondary School (JSS)1 to Senior Secondary School(SSS)3. I can remember in 1976 when our set were faced with leakages in the examination, other set of questions were made available, but unfortunately 3 1/4 of the questions were what we were taught in Form Three, while the remaining were from Forms Four and Five syllabi. Then, most of us still came out tops. However, it was during an era of institutional discipline, when even illiterate parents supported the cause of the teachers’ efforts in bringing out the best in the children.

Since 1985, things have not been the same for the nation in all spheres of human endeavor because of the man made environment of institutional indiscipline and corrupt practices in the quest to realize the best without putting in necessary efforts.

The core values of self confidence, self esteem and self reliance are no longer there. We have forgotten that the home and the children form the cluster of the micro elements for the society while government and its institutions form the macro, that is exactly the mirror image of the home and its products. From my personal research based on my concern on value deterioration of education I discovered that the time our children spend in school is very insignificant compared to the time they will spend in life, the geriatric period inclusive. What we teach in the classrooms, laboratories and workshops in schools to these children are mere 20 per cent of what they need to survive the ordeals of life without deviating and resorting to committing sins and crimes to be successful in life. The remaining 80 per cent is better learnt based on what they see in their environment, quick money making syndrome without hard work. This is why they fail holistically to learn correctly under mentor-ship and pupil-age interactions for the necessary wisdom.

The materials to teach in faith based houses of god are equally defective, due to the quest to become successful in the quickest time frame, in this sense through diabolic means .The necessary firmness of purpose is no longer there for those who attend the Church or the Mosque. In the absence of a role model, the poverty of knowledge takes over. This is a psychological problem that needs to be corrected for education to become more beneficial to our children. The structure of education is intact for necessary impact, but the way we impart education is defective. For example, the attitudinal value of the affective domain is no more emphasized, hence the disciplinary aspect of the children lives is watered down. We have become robotic in the application of the cognitive domain and Nigerian children are yet to learn anything about innovation which is the essence of the psycho motor domain because of the attitude of our government towards education.

Teachers and Lecturers are rarely motivated and challenged because they are only selective with few lucky numbers, when it comes to the essential training needs. This position is worse for Primary and Secondary school teachers who our government will carelessly claim are too many when it comes to the payment of salaries, but in actual fact there is a worrisome shortage of teachers. It is true that the advent of the social media has resulted in the drop in the reading culture, while parents are not ready to correct this lapse.

These are fundamental issues that must be addressed urgently, before the concerns of the state Governors on the improvement needs of our students in their performances could be resulted oriented.

In the time past, when academic calendars were never toyed with, teachers and students performances were aspects to reckon with, but presently, there is always instability in the academic calendar ,with students most of the session been at home, with all the attendant distractions of the peer group effect and the poor ones among them hawking the streets to make ends meet.

Poverty is equally a great factor that is affecting the concentration of students in their studies. A peep into what is happening in Oyo state, as regards the state Government’s attention and focus on education is commendable. All that will aid learning are already in place. Poor parents are been taken care of and compiled Questions and Answers of WAEC/NECO into booklets have been given to the final year students, the teachers’ copies based on the subjects been taught are been photocopied for them by each school to digest well in order that they would be authoritatively fit to put the students through.

It should be emphasized that the students should not be robotic about the past Questions and Answers. There are 12 reasons why students fail examinations : 1) Inadequate preparation by the trio of the parents, teachers and students 2) Overconfidence by some students . 3) Examination anxiety. 4) Examination misconduct and malpractices. 5)Memory loss. 6)Time management and control. 7) Bad gang effects of negative peer groups and probable hard drug effects. 8) Bad sleeping habits 9) Lack of access to education materials such as books, due to lack of funds. 10) Lack of good reading habits. 11) Intrinsic property of an introvert that may lead to shyness in asking questions. 12) Ignoring instructions in Question and Answer sheets.

The parents, teachers and counseling psychologists must be able to help the students in order that they overcome the need for positive mindset with respect to positive mental attitude for ease of taking right decisions most especially in their quest to learn, for them to be able to pay back positively to the concerns and efforts of the state Governors in their belief that with adequate preparations no students must fail WAEC or NECO.

The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Ibadan Grammar  Students Association(IGSOSA)Chief Goodie Minabo Ibru has expressed optimism that the school's Information and Communication Technology(ICT) complex and E-Library would serve as  a centre of excellence for E-Learning in Oyo state.

Chief Ibru made this known last Saturday, in his goodwill message during the Annual General Meeting of IGSOSA, held at the Emmanuel Alayande hall, Ibadan Grammar School, Molete, Ibadan, Nigeria.

''I would also like to thank Professor Venerable Jaiyeoba for attending the Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday, 20th November, 2019 at which we touched on issues as IGSOSA foundation which was incorporated November, 2014. The school reverting to its owners, the title Deed of Ibadan Grammar School and encroachment on the school property. We also discussed the ICT complex and the E-Library, which is the only school in Oyo state with a first  class ICT centre, a millenium library cum E-Library. It should therefore serve as a centre of excellence in E-learning in Oyo state like the Higher School Certificate(HSC)did in 1960 as the secondary school to start HSC in Nigeria(after Kings College, Lagos'', Chief Ibru stated.

In his address, the National President of IGSOSA, Professor Kolawole Jaiyeoba expressed hope that all the issues impeding the take off of the foundation would be resolved soon, adding'' it gladdens our hearts that  the school is a reference point in post primary education not only in Oyo state but in Nigeria as a whole''.

The National Executive Council of IGSOSA  emerged through consensus during its  Annual General Meeting in 2018 .

The World Intellectual Property Organisation  has ranked Kenya second  in Sub-Sahara Africa, behind South Africa in its Global Innovation Ratings report.

The report also state that Kenya has overtaken  other countries in matching  their level of innovation to general economic development.

Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKuat), Moi University, Kenyatta University, Strathmore University and University of Nairobi  are among other private and public research agencies  in the contributors list.

Both Jkuat and Moi University’s technology assembling plants are two major  innovation milestones achieved by the country. The plants have earned the two institutions multi billion-shilling international and local tenders.

These institutions are saddled with the responsibility of  assembling and configuring  of the digital devices currently being used in the 2019 national population census.

The institutions also pioneered the implementation of the Government’s digital literacy program and are key to the achievement of the Big Four Agenda.

The report ranks  Switzerland as the leading innovation hub in the world., while Sweden ranks above the US at second position.

South Africa, number one in Africa are ranked 63rd in the world while  Kenya is 77th and Mauritius 82nd globally.