Primary education is the first stage of formal education, it lays the foundation for future learning and plays a critical role in shaping a child’s cognitive, emotional and social development. A strong foundation in primary education sets the stage for future academic achievements. A well-educated population contributes to a country’s economic growth and competitiveness.
It is, however, sad to note that primary education in Kaduna State is facing serious challenges ranging from shortage of manpower, lack of motivation to infrastructural deficit. What has crippled the development of primary education in the state is the consequences of El-Rufai’s irrational decisions to axe over 25,000 primary school teachers in 2017.
The sacking of thousands of teachers has created a huge manpower gap and negatively affected primary school education in the state.
Unfortunately, subsequent recruitment by the state government failed to address the personnel shortage. Many schools that had enough teaching staff prior to El-Rufai’s destructive policy were forced to manage inadequate teachers.
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Even some of the recruited teachers had to abandon their duties post, citing poor condition of service by the last administration. With the new Sheriff in town, one had expected Governor Uba Sani to have reviewed some of El-Rufai’s policies that hamper the development of primary education and formulate new ones.
No doubt, primary schools in Kaduna State are gasping and need urgent oxygen to survive. The schools are battling with a shortage of teaching staff. While some education funded NGOs like BESDA and AGILE have come to the aid of our nearly collapsing primary education through the building of modern classes to bridge infrastructure deficit and give primary education a facelift, it is high time the state government did its own bit.
During the 2025 budget presentation, Governor Uba Sani, stated that his government has set aside, 26.14% of the budget for the education sector. This is cheering news.
We passionately appeal to the governor to fix the multi-faceted problems bedevilling primary education in the state. There is the need for government to recruit more teachers as many schools are without the needed number of teachers.
The government should also pay serious attention to the training of teachers. This will help them to acquire new teaching methods and innovation. It will also go a long way towards assisting them to excel in their profession. Moreover, primary school teachers hardly receive their salaries on time.
With the excruciating cost of living in the country, starving teachers will not give full attention to their teaching jobs let alone pass knowledge to the younger ones. Besides timely payment of their salary, government should consider approving rural allowance to teachers posted to rural areas. This will spur them to give their best.
The development of other stages of education depends largely on primary education. It is the foundation upon which other stages are built. By addressing the challenges and leveraging innovation, Governor Uba Sani can improve the quality and accessibility of primary education which will ultimately empower future generations to succeed in the state.
Ibrahim Mustapha Pambegua, Kaduna State