THE immediate past commissioner for Education, Science, and Technology in Oyo state, Professor Adeniyi Olowofela has been recognised and honoured by the Centre for Organizational And Professional Ethnics (COPE-AFRICA) with SGB Icon award.

Speaking at the award ceremony on Monday which was held at the Lekan Are Hall, Government College Ibadan, the Chairman, COPE AFRICA, a UNDP consultant, Dr Adeyeye Adewole informed that the Centre deemed it fit to honour Olowofela due to his creative ideas, passion for development, innovative solutions to recurring problems in secondary sub-sector which led to the School Governing Board (SGB) initiative.

The Associate Professor, Adeyeye said from the onset the School Governing Boards (SGBs) initiative was one of the best thing that has happened to Oyo state in recent time. According to him, “every secondary schools across Oyo state is now being piloted by a governing council that work assiduously to enhance quality of administration; institute better policy directions; push for innovative practices and adopt creative solutions to specific problems and more importantly attract massive infrastructure and growth.

“In 2018 alone, the monetary worth of the quantum of infrastructure and other resources have been injected into Oyo State Secondary School system through the ingenuity of SGB is over N2billion. Many Schools are now experiencing phenomenal growth and infrastructure transformation through creative approach propelled outside the regular and mostly inadequate government provisions. On this special note, we commend the Oyo State School Governing Boards (SGBs) for this towering feat. We also commend the Chairmen and respected members of School Governing Boards (SGBs) across Oyo State for commitment in their services to humanity as well as implementation of legacy projects that has helped to reposition secondary education sub -sector for the benefits of unborn generation”, he added.

The COPE AFRICA chair further appreciated the Abiola Ajimobi led administration for this initiative ” that  has become the toast of many states across Nigeria”.

In his remarks, Professor Adeniyi Olowofela, while expressing gratitude to Governor Ajimobi for the opportunity given to serve explained, “when we started the School Governing Board (SGB) system, we have to do advocacy. We moved throughout the entire education zone in the state to do training upon training for people and we thank God that today the School Governing Board (SGB) system is well understood. And as a dynamic system, definitely there will be improvement, so as you are moving forward using the template of the manual, we belief strongly that we will ultimately reach the peak as far as the best practices in education are concerned.

” I also want to congratulate you because Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN Commission), look at the School Governing Board system and they have adopted it as a policy for the entire Southwest of Nigeria. When they told me that they will be giving me award as ICON for School Governing Board, to me this is a collective award, its not a token of recognition of your efforts, especially all the members of the School Governing Board that are not taking one kobo for their service.

“But I know that it gladdens their hearts that they are contributing immensely to education in the state and it has also afforded them the opportunity to change the paradigm in the state. It is easy to criticize, it is even easy to condemn government, but what are your contributions to make sure that Nigeria and Oyo state change from what it used to be to where we are supposed to be? So, I thank you for your support, especially when it is selfless.

” Let me also say that we have to commend the secretaries of the School Governing Board, those that are the principals of the schools. They are the ones that are there every now and then to know the problems facing a particular school system and we know that they have been judiciously and wisely spending the funds in conjunction with the members of the board, money accrue or accruable to the school either through education development levy or by some direct supports from old students or community at large in moving education forward in the state.

“It also gladdens my heart that the intervention fund of SUBEB; as at the last time we had it was 2012 but as at today, Oyo State Government has been able to access, even up to 2018. The simple implication is that this will also affect our primary education positively. When you also see that the statistics and the job done by the Ministry of Education and all education stakeholders led to the fact that the discovery of out of school children in the state.

“Based on the policy paper written by these gentlemen in various ministries, Oyo State Government has secured the sum of $500m to tackle the issue of out of school children in the next five years. This is a project that will outlived this government and that’s how a good government must think, you must think beyond immediate, you must think about the future.

“Essentially this project is inter ministerial in approach, it may be resident in the ministry of education, but everybody must participate in it because each child counts as far as education is concern.

“When you want to destroy a nation, destroy the education of that nation and when you want to build a nation build the education of that nation”, Olowofela continued.