INTERNATIONAL DAY OF EDUCATION: EXPERTS CALL FOR MORE INVESTMENT IN NIGERIA’S EDUCATION SECTOR

REPORTER: NDU NWANNAH

Some Experts in the Education Sector want the Federal and State Governments to invest more in the Academic Industry to safeguard the future of the nation.

The stakeholders stated this in Awka, Anambra State, while speaking on the occasion of the 2022 International Day of Education.

The theme of the 2022 International Day of Education is “Changing Course, Transforming Education.”

The event is observed on the 24th of January, annually, following its proclamation by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on December 3, 2018 to celebrate the role of education in promoting peace and development.

In choosing the theme, UNESCO has the aim of showcasing the transformations to be nurtured to realize citizens’ fundamental rights to education.

This right to education is enshrined in Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which calls for free and compulsory elementary education for all children of school age.

Speaking on the theme, a lecturer in the Department of English Language and Literature, UNIZIK, Awka, Dr. Mike Uyanne, explains that education is the foundation of any future endeavour in the society and must be accorded its rightful place.

Dr. Uyanne calls on political leaders to make adequate budgetary provisions for the education sector to ensure its transformation as well as to arrest the decay in the system.

Another lecturer, this time, from the Department of Geology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Dr. Ifeanyi Chinwuko, says there is the need for government and other stakeholders to invest in the education of children to secure their future.

Dr. Chinwuko stresses that adequate funding of the education sector will help Nigeria attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

A Public Affairs Analyst, Comrade Charles Nworah, argues that the creation of multiple private schools without subjecting them to scrutiny is affecting the standard of education in the country.

Comrade Nworah calls for efforts to reduce the cost of basic education to enable citizens to have access to learning.

Also, the National President, Youth Initiative Against Corruption, Comrade Chidozie Okoli, suggests that government should through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) intervene in the development of Early Child Education.

Comrade Okoli further points out the need to invest up to 20% of the annual budget in education to ensure appropriate funding of the sector.