Our Vision is to make basic education compulsory, conducive, accessible in Nasarawa– NSUBEB Chairman

By David Odama

Chairman, Nasarawa State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr. Kassim Muhammad Kassim, has declared that the vision of the Nasarawa state government under the leadership of Eng.

Kassim also reaffirmed the commitment of his administration as the board chairman to ensuring that every child in Nasarawa State has access to quality and compulsory basic education, in line with Governor Abdullahi Sule’s education development agenda.

Dr. Kassim said at the weekend when he led the NSUBEB management team on a courtesy visit to the State Commissioner for Education, Dr. John Mamam, in Lafia, that the aimed the board under his leadership is to foster closer collaboration between the state agencies to drive the state’s basic education reforms.

Kassim who raised concerns over the quality of teaching, shortage of staff, and deteriorating infrastructure in many Primary and Junior Secondary Schools across the state, stressed the need for the Board to assume full operational control of the JSS status to ensure proper monitoring and supervision towards efficiency in state junior secondary school in the state.

“Our vision is to make basic education free, compulsory, and accessible in a conducive learning environment for every Nasarawa child,” Kassim emphasized.

According to the board Chairman, on assumption of office, two months ago, he met numerous challenges, including dilapidated infrastructure, inadequate staffing, poor teacher commitment, and the absence of essential learning materials. However, he said his administration has since initiated measures to reverse the trend and build a stronger education system.B

“By law, Junior Secondary Schools are under SUBEB, but operationally, they are managed by the Ministry of Education. We employ, train, and retrain the teachers, monitor their activities, and build the schools.

We are appealing to the ministry to allow us handle the full operations of the JSS for better coordination and performance,” he statede announced plans to organise an educational summit themed “Revitalizing Basic Education in Nasarawa State”, which he said will serve as a platform to chart a new, strategic direction for the sector.I

Responding, Commissioner for Education, Dr. John Mamam, applauded the board chairman for the proposed synergy, describing basic education as the cornerstone of a functional education system.

“Once a child misses the foundation, it becomes a problem,” Dr. Mamam said. “In the past, those who completed Standard 7 were often better equipped than many of our university graduates today. That shows how important foundational education is.

”He assured that the Ministry of Education would work closely with NSUBEB to ensure that reforms in the basic education sector are sustained for the benefit of Nasarawa’s children.