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NBTE trains North-West quality assurance assessors

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North West Assurance Meeting

 

The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has commenced the training of Quality Assurance Assessors in the Northwest zone.

Declaring the five-day training workshop open on Monday in Kano, the NBTE Executive Secretary, Prof. Idris Bugaje, said that the training was supported by the World Bank under the “Innovation Development and Effectiveness in the Acquisition of Skills (IDEAS)“ project.

Bugaje, represented by his Special Adviser, Alhaji Ibrahim Bello, explained that the World Bank was supporting the Federal Ministry of Education and some selected states to promote technical and vocational education in the country.

He said the project was geared towards enhancing the quality and relevance of skills in the country, noting that the IDEAS project was in six states across the federation.

Quality Assurance and Academic Progress in KUST: A testimonial of innovative stride under Professor Shehu Alhaji Musa

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The NBTE boss disclosed that the project was meant to intervene in the development of the technical colleges and skills sector in Nigeria.

He described the initiative as vital for the growth of the Nigerian economy.

Bugaje expressed regrets that over the years technical colleges were not functioning as expected.

He said this made the World Bank to provide a $200 million loan for the Federal government to reposition technical colleges in some selected states in order to close the skill gaps in the country.

Bugaje, who lamented the shortage of quality assurance assessors in the country, noted that the participants would be trained with a view for them to be able to train youths in skill acquisition.

“The number of quality assurance assessors is not more than 1,500 in a country of 200 million people and that is why the Federal Government is partnering with IDEAS to close the gap,” he said.

The Project Manager of IDEAS, Abbati Muhammad, said that the World Bank was supporting the IDEAS project in each of the participating state with $200 million credit facility for its smooth implementation.

According to him, the project has four components with the core objective of enhancing the capacity of the Nigerian skills development system to produce relevant skills for the formal and informal sectors.

He explained that the training would enhance their capacity to effectively carry out their assigned activities across all the four project components of the scheme.

Muhammad explained that some of the challenges in the sector could be surmounted through the National Skill Qualification Framework developed to achieve the occupational standardisation.

Earlier, the commissioner for Education, Ya’u Yanshana, said that Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje launched the project ‘Innovation Development and Effectiveness in the Acquisition of Skills“ recently.

According to him, the implementation of the project signifies the seriousness and commitment of those managing the IDEAS project.

He commended the NBTE for its concerted efforts to see that much was achieve within the life span of the project.

Represented by the Executive Secretary, Science and Technology Schools Board, Ahmed Abdullahi, noted that advent of knowledge economy and educational competences were prized above natural resources as the prime factor in national development.

“The combination of science, technology and mathematics education is acknowledged as the pivot of economic and industrial development, with its sub-sector, Technical, Vocational Education and training (TVET) as the pillars of the economy.

“A country’s standing in science and technology and in TVET defines her stand in the ladder of the world economies.

“Success stories of the newly industrialising countries (NICs) such as as Korea, China and Malaysia attest to the fact that the systematic application of scientific and technological knowledge is a major actor to leapfrog into sustainable economic development, ” he said.

He urged the participants to make good use of the knowledge they had acquired for the overall development of the state and the country at large.

Some of the participants, who spoke to our correspondent commended the organisers and promised to share the knowledge with others.

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President Tinubu Seeks Senate Confirmation for Lt. General Oluyede as Chief of Army Staff

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President Bola Tinubu on Friday wrote the Senate, seeking confirmation of Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede’s appointment as the substantive Chief of Army Staff.

“In his letter sent today, President Tinubu seeks Oluyede’s confirmation in accordance with the provision of Section 218(2) of the 1999 Constitution as amended and Section 18(1) of the Armed Forces Act,” Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed in a statement.

The statement is titled ‘President Tinubu writes Senate, seeks confirmation of Lt. General Oluyede as Chief of Army Staff.’

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Tinubu appointed Oluyede as the Acting Chief of Army Staff on October 30 following the illness of Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja.

General Lagbaja, however, died on November 5.

Onanuga said, “President Tinubu is confident about the leadership qualities, professional integrity, and experience of Lt. General Oluyede to lead and inspire the army to ensure national security and stability.”

Before he was appointed Acting Chief of Army Staff, Oluyede, a member of the 39th Regular Course, like his predecessor, served as the 56th Commander of the elite Infantry Corps of the Nigerian Army, based in Jaji, Kaduna.

 

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Lawyer Alleges Tenure Elongation Plot in Letter to Governor Yusuf

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Barrister Mustapha I. Zubair, a prominent lawyer and politically conscious citizen of Kano State, has written a letter to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, alleging a plot by certain senior civil servants to extend their tenure of service beyond the mandated retirement age. The letter, which expresses deep concern over the issue, highlights the potential implications of such actions on the state’s governance and public trust.

Zubair, a registered voter of Gwale Local Government, begins the letter by expressing gratitude and admiration for Governor Yusuf’s leadership and pro-people policies. “Your exemplary leadership and pro-people policies have continually fostered growth and prosperity, and we, the citizens, are deeply appreciative of your dedication,” Zubair states in the letter.

However, Zubair quickly shifts focus to the matter of tenure elongation, which he describes as a growing concern among the people of Kano State. “It is evidently clear that after the recent posting of permanent secretaries in the state, some top government functionaries who will be due for retirement in December 2024 are now striving day and night to secure tenure elongation only for themselves,” he alleges.

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The letter emphasizes the potential negative implications of such actions, suggesting that the attempt to prolong service tenure by a few senior civil servants could undermine the principles of fairness and transparency in the state’s administration. Zubair urges Governor Yusuf to address the issue promptly to maintain public trust and ensure that the state’s governance remains transparent and accountable.

The letter concludes with a plea for Governor Yusuf to take immediate action to prevent any attempts at tenure elongation and to uphold the integrity of the state’s civil service. “We trust in your commitment to justice and fairness, and we believe that you will take the necessary steps to address this issue,” Zubair writes.

The allegations have sparked discussions among political observers and citizens, who are keenly watching how Governor Yusuf will respond to the concerns raised in the letter.

 

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FG Obeys Court’s Order, Stops FAAC Allocation to Rivers State

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Senator Bola Ahmad Tinubu

 

The Nigerian government under President Bola Tinubu has confirmed that it has stopped the October monthly Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) revenue payment to Rivers State.

The development comes amid the ongoing face-off between Governor Simi Fubara and the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesome Wike.

According to the Spokesperson of the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Bawa Mokwa, the decision to stop the payment was made in respect of a court order.

Mokwa disclosed that the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) will respect the court order, which barred the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian government from disbursing monthly allocations to the Rivers State government.

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His words: “What I got is that the October 2024 FAAC has not been distributed yet. However, the Federal Government will obey the court order on the matter of Rivers State allocation.

“We are going to follow due diligence as long as there is no contrary order. In case there is a contrary, the status will remain.”

He added, “The process of disbursement of the October 2024 monthly allocation is going.”

The court order was obtained by the factional Rivers State Assembly, led by Martin Amaewhule, who had filed an originating summons against the Rivers State Executive, under the leadership of Simi Fubara.

The Amaewhule faction had alleged that the Rivers State Executive was yet to comply with the order of a Federal High Court directing it to re-present the 2024 appropriation bill to the faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

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