The Lagos State Government has reviewed its policy on education for the first time in 30 years.
Announcing this during a Stakeholders’ Engagement Forum held on Tuesday, Deputy-Governor Oluranti Adebule said the decision to review the State Policy on Education was part of efforts aimed at sustaining investments in the growth and development of the state.
Adebule, who delivered the keynote speech at the event, said the forum was also intended to canvass support and contributions from all relevant stakeholders in the education sector.
She said that a three-day retreat held in December 2017, themed, ‘Lagos State Education Policy Review: Expanding Access to Quality Education’, preceded the review of the education policy accomplished by a team of experts led by the former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Prof. Peter Okebukola.
The deputy-governor said, “Our educational system must be re-engineered and schools repositioned to deliver graduates who will blend with global trends. In pursuit of this goal, we are here as stakeholders in the education sector to brainstorm and agree on some reforms.
“It would be recalled that the educational policy of Lagos State was last reviewed in 1988. Although successive governments in the state introduced various initiatives aimed at the delivery of better education service, the time has come for a total overhaul of the policy in order to address all the issues raised.”
Also speaking at the event, Okebukola described the freshly reviewed policy as “rich and comprehensive”.
He said that beyond the state government, everybody, including civil society groups, school proprietors, parents, teachers and others should be involved in the implementation of the policy.
He said, “A good policy is of no use if not adequately implemented. However, the faithful implementation does not rest with the government but with all the stakeholders.”
Others at the forum, including traditional rulers, school proprietors, and development partners, among others, called for adequate implementation of the recommendations and supervision by relevant authorities.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Mrs. Adebunmi Adekanye, said the state government allocated N126.3bn to the education in Lagos in 2018 because of its commitment to the sector.
Adekanye noted that the overall performance of pupils from Lagos State in the the West African Senior School Certificate Examination not only justified the investment in the education but also confirmed the excellent progress being recorded.
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