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From Emmanuel Adeyemi, Lokoja
Kogi State Governor Alhaji Yahaya Bello has been praised for injecting life into tertiary institutions in the state which has led to the total accreditations of courses in those schools and has largely enhanced the overall development of education in the confluence state.
Making the commendation in an exclusive chat with our correspondent yesterday, the state commissioner of education, Mr Wemi Jones said Governor Bello has made an unprecedented impact on the education sector in a way that has not been witnessed since the creation of the state 30 years ago.
The commissioner said the governor has not only provided the needed funds to these tertiary institutions but has also provided the needed facilities and created conducive learning and teaching through a robust welfare package for both teaching and non-teaching staff.
“The climax of this well-focused attention to make the state-owned higher institutions a shining example to other states culminated into the hundred per cent accreditation of courses offered in all state-owned higher institutions,” he stated.
For example, he said the governor ensured that all the 48 courses offered in the Kogi State University, Ayingba secured full accreditation from Nigeria universities commission making it the first time ever since the establishment of the institution.
Aside from this feat of a hundred per cent accreditation of all courses, the institution also emerged 25th out of the 170 public and private universities in Nigeria that have full accreditation for all courses offered.
The state-owned polytechnic in Lokoja also shared the joy of full accreditation of all courses offered at the institution as it achieved 100 per cent success in the recent accreditation exercise conducted by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), the commissioner said.
He attributed the resounding success to Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello’s unflinching commitment to the development of education in the state.
In the words of the commissioner ” another regulatory body, the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) also found the two state-owned colleges of Education namely College of Education Ankpa and College of Education Technical, Kabba worthy of full accreditation of the courses offered by them making it first-ever in the history of the two schools”
The commissioner disclosed that out of 32 courses presented to the National Commission of Colleges of Education all the courses got full accreditation and that the accreditation of all the courses will be valid from 2022 to 2027.
He noted that aside the accreditation of courses in the College, the National Commission for Colleges of Education looked at governance, Infrastructure in the College, expressed appreciation with what was on the ground, thus making the college get full accreditation in terms of institutional accreditation.
Continuing, Wemi Jones said: “The story is not different at the College of Education Technical, Kabba, 17 courses offered at the College got full accreditation in 2017 a year into Governor Yahaya Bello’s administration and he ensured the partial movement of the institution to it’s permanent site.
“Governor Yahaya Bello also completed 10 buildings at the permanent site n, provided a big bus to ease movement of staff and students aside from other facilities
“Also worried by the gap created by the number of Kogi indigenes seeking admission yearly and the number that got admitted, Governor Yahaya Bello established the Confluence University of Science and Technology, (CUSTECH), Osara in the year 2020 and appointed a renowned Engineer and academic per Excellence, Professor Sadiku Salawu as the Vice-Chancellor
“And barely, two years of existence, the university is a growing concern and has bridged the gap for Kogi indigenes seeking admission and even admission seekers from neighbouring states. The university currently has three faculties with nineteen courses running and all duly approved by Nigeria Universities Commission.
“Aside from accreditations of courses, one other big achievement of Governor Bello in the educational sector, he said is academic stability as students on resumption know when they will graduate without any kind of disruptions.
“This has made higher institutions in the state the much sought after as students from even neighbouring states jostle to gain admission in the state-owned institutions because they are sure of graduating in record time,” the commissioner added
