The Education Minister, Professor Tahir Mamman has said that the newly designed road map will soon be unveiled so that all stakeholders will be aware and know what to do as education is turning a new leaf in Nigeria.
The Minister stated this during the submission of the final report of the road map in Abuja, the nation’s capital
He said the roadmap which is set for implementation is particular about out-of-school children, school dropouts, inadequate infrastructure, teachers, graduate employability and many more will be implemented.
“We mean business, where we can abridge we will do so, where we cannot we will follow it to the later. There is no time for foot-dragging
“We have a lot of young people out there with a bleak future looking onto us. There are out-of-school children, school dropouts, graduates not employable and more. We want to do an overhaul from basic to tertiary so that they can bring value to the system.“
He said mechanisms will be set out for the implementation of the roadmap with constant monitoring and evaluation to make sure it is on track.
“The monitoring committee will be submitting reports on a monthly basis for us to know whether we are on track or not. It will assist the Directors in carrying out their work. The roadmap is practical and problem-solving. The time to talk is over. It is time for practical action.”
The Minister said though education is on the concurrent list, the federal government will be influential in the implementation of the new roadmap as it will create the right policies, guarantee loans and ensure that funds from development partners are well channelled down to the Local Government Areas.
“There will be prudent utilization of funds.
“We also have a lot of governors who are demonstrating commitment to the content of the roadmap. So there is going to be an engagement with the governors for successful implementation,” he said.
On the issue of past reports not being implemented and the faith of the current one, the minister said there will be a departure from the past.
“That something has been failing does not mean that it can not succeed. This is a report that will not lie on the shelf like others. This I can assure you.”
He said the roadmap will succeed because President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is passionate about it and has given responsibilities for actions to be taken on his behalf.
“More so because the two of them superintending the ministry as ministers are not happy with what is going on in the education sector as such everything possible will done for success to be achieved.
“Now that we have the opportunity, we need to translate our anger to positivity,” he said.
The Chairman of the eight-man roadmap committee, Dr. Nuru Yakubu said the committee took a high-level review of documents on policies and past reports in the ministry, held a workshop for stakeholders’ contribution, identified gaps and adopted areas to align with the objectives of the present government.
He said 13 thematic areas with strategic plan of action were critically looked into which includes; out-of-school children, Basic and Senior Secondary Education, Girl-Child Education, Youths and Adult Literacy, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematical (STEAM).
Others he said are: Entrepreneurship Education, Curriculum and Policy Matters, Capacity Building and Professional Development, Teacher Education, Tertiary Education and Students Support Services, Education Data and Planning, ICT Education and Library Services.
“We have incorporated the Ministerial Performance Bond to presidential priorities and deliverables 2023-2027 under the appropriate thematic areas with special focus on out-of-school children, girl-child education, skills and entrepreneurial education.
“We are convinced that this document will make a difference, it will lead to you leaving your footprint,” he concluded.
The committee was inaugurated on September 5th and was given a six-week timeline to submit the report.
