By David Owei, Baylesa

The Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has called for effective engagement of the private sector and traditional institution in the UNESCO and European Union-supported Education and Youth Empowerment in Nigeria (EYEN) project in the state.

Governor Diri made the call on Tuesday at the formal launch and inauguration of the state Steering Committee of the second phase of the project at the Golden Tulip in Yenagoa.

Represented at the event by his deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, the governor emphasized that private schools were part and parcel of the educational system and should not be excluded from projects aimed at building teachers’ capacity.

According to him, a great number of pupils and students attend private schools in the state, and therefore, stressed the need for stakeholders in the education sector to always carry their proprietors along in critical capacity building programmes.

He identified some of the nagging challenges of education in the state as lack of proper supervision, absenteeism and lopsided posting of teachers, and not shortage of teachers.

Governor Diri noted that “every school is located in a community and so community leaders should also play supportive role especially in the area of checkmating truant teachers.”

The Bayelsa helmsman, who reiterated that education remains the topmost priority of his administration, thanked the European Union, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO) for the support they had given to the state through the project.

His words; “We thank UNESCO and the European Union for this support you have given to us; it is a shot on the arm of our educational policies and drive.

“But we really need to see how we can incorporate the private sector. We make the mistake by thinking that the private sector are on their own.

“No, they are not on their own. That is the mistake we are making even in the health sector. They are part of the system that is delivering educational. So, we can’t keep them all out.

“As you are aware in Bayelsa, education is our number one priority. We give a lot of priority to education because an uneducated society is a useless society. Education makes people easy to lead, but difficult to enslave.

“The Government today has taken STEM because with it we believe can fly through the radar and sky of our educational hemisphere. With Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), we can achieve whatever we want to achieve.”

Earlier, the Commissioner for Education, Dr. Gentle Emelah, expressed gratitude to the EU and UNESCO for the project , stressing that the launch marked not just a significant investment in the future of the children of the state, but also a commitment to the socioeconomic growth of the state.

Giving an overview of the project, the Education and Partnerships Officer of UNESCO, Abuja Office, Magdalene Anene-Maidah, said the objective of the 48-month project is to contribute to improved student attainment and Nigeria’s human development by innovatively increasing the number of qualified and resilient teachers.”

Highpoint of the event was the inauguration of the State Project Steering Committee chaired by the Commissioner for Education, Dr. Gentle Emelah, while Mrs Seiyefa Sunday is to serve as state coordinator.

Members of the committee are Chief Victor Okubonanabo, Dr. (Mrs) Alice Atuwo, Simon-Peter Okene, Ms Boboye Ogola, Jaja Esaliba, and Okpona Ozori.

Others are Zips Polly Ebikibina, Kelvin Lafighe, Pere-Ebogho Joseph, Prof. Akpoebi Egumu, Famous Dickson, Otobo Richman, and Pedro Igbudu.

Goodwill messages were also delivered by the Chairman of the State Traditional Rulers Council, King Bubaraye Dakolo; the state NUT Chairman, Mr Richman Otobo; the Provost of Isaac Jasper Boro College of Education, Dr. Ebitimi Berezi, and the Executive Chairman of the Teachers Training and Certification Board, Dr. Peremoboere Ugolo.