Penultimate Saturday, Kano Government House was agog with guests from within and outside the country, mostly stakeholders in the education sector who thronged the state to witness the historic declaration of state of emergency on education by the state government under the stewardship of governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
The declaration was necessitated by an alarming proliferation of out-of-school children with its figure currently standing at 989,234 of both genders, a situation that threatens to rob the entire generation of their right to education and a brighter future.
Dilapidated schools structures, lack of instructional materials, severe shortage of qualified teachers, in- adequate teacher training programs coupled with the socio-economic challenges in basic and post-basic schools across the state made learning and teaching very difficult if not impossible.
Statistics at government’s disposal indicates that out of the 42, 516 total classrooms available, a mere 22% meet the basic standard of habitability as nearly four out of every five classrooms in Kano’s primary and secondary schools are marred by dilapidation and disrepair rendering them unsuitable for the noble pursuit of knowledge.
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At the secondary schools level, less than 30% of classrooms can be deemed habitable, leaving a significant number of students of such schools to grapple with inadequate facilities that impede their intellectual growth and development.
Looking at the science and technical schools, the pathetic story is the same with the less than 20% of classes meeting the most basic criteria for habitability making it difficult to nurture the next generation of scientists, IT experts and engineers when the very environments in which they are meant to learn are ripe with inadequacies and deficiencies.
Passionate and committed to rescue the education sector from the total collapse, on Saturday, 8th of June, 2024, the Kano State Government declared state of emergency on education to address the critical challenges facing the sector with a clarion call to all the stakeholders to unite and prioritize the revitalization of the education system for the overall benefit of the society.
The cardinal aim of declaring the state of emergency on education was encapsulated in the overall vision for the education delivery in the state as articulated in a statement viz:
Every school, a good school; every child enrolled in school; every student, an engaged learner; every teacher, a caring educator; every parent, a supportive partner; and your government, a committed investor in human capital development.
The declaration as envisaged will enable the government to mobilize resources, implement urgent reforms, and focus on strategic interventions that will rebuild educational infrastructure, provide necessary materials, and reclaim schools from encroachment.
Sani Surajo Abubakar is an Assistant Chief Information Officer, Government House, Kano
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