By Bashir Mohammed Kano
Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu has revealed that 12 states in the country “have not accessed the Universal Basic Education (UBE) fund for 2015.” Speaking during the opening ceremony of the ministerial session of the 62nd National Council on Education (NCE) in Kano yesterday, Adamu wondered why the state governments of the federation failed to apply for the fund in order to develop basic education. According to him, only less than half of the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), accessed the UBE fund for 2016. He attributed the poor implementation of basic education in the country to failure of the state governments in the country to access the fund. “What could be responsible for this level of complacency by states towards the implementation of critical policies and laws in education? Is education not a priority for the states? Will the removal of education from the concurrent legislative list ensure quality of education delivery for all citizens?” He said the “UBE Act 2004 makes provision for 2% of the Consolidated Revenue Fund for basic education,” and lamented that the states failed to apply and access the money. He called on the states to rise up to their responsibility and partner with the federal government to provide quality inclusive education to children.
