Why I want to bequeath legacy of quality education in Edo — Obaseki

Forum 1 year ago

Why I want to bequeath legacy of quality education in Edo — Obaseki

THE Governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki, has said his desire, as he winds up his tenure, is to leave behind a transformed public education that will prepare the young ones for a knowledge-based economy which is required to survive the Fourth Industrial Revolution and a workforce that will usher in a prosperous society.

Obaseki stated this in Benin on Wednesday at the start of the Edo State Education Week 2023 with the theme, “Education for Alaghodaro: Investing in quality education and access for our children and youth.”

According to him, “Our grand plan is to make Edo State the best place to live and work by the year 2050, and we have realized that there is no better way to achieve this dream than training the workforce for the future from the primary school level so that these children will be the guardians of the vision and see to its fulfilment in future.

“It is expedient to reiterate that the most cherished legacy I want to be remembered for as the Governor of Edo State is a legacy that we were able to transform public education and create opportunities for hundreds of thousands of children from across the various strata of our society so that they can get a decent world-class education just like we did growing up here.

“The education week, this year, has been rightly themed Education for Alaghodaro which means progress. The theme is education for progress and it ties to our vision to drive and develop plans with conscious and educated citizens,” the governor said.

He said the journey for education reforms in the state started in 2018 when his administration launched the Edo State Basic Education Transformation (EdoBEST) programme.

Obaseki expressed gratitude to the World Bank and other stakeholders for their support in sustaining the EdoBEST initiative and ensuring that millions of children didn’t drop off the educational radar globally.

Speaking at the event, the Commissioner for Education, Dr Joan Oviawe, said the reason for the Edo International Book and Art Festival with the theme; “Every Child a reading champion” which is part of the celebration was, “Because of our ongoing effort in eradicating learning poverty in Edo State. We have been given a mandate by His Excellency that by the time the Edo child is finishing primary one, they should be able to read and write.”

The keynote address presenter, Lebo Marshile, said the programme was an eye-opener for youths in Nigeria to their potential of dominating the world in the nearest future.