Victoria Mbangwa
As part of efforts to ensure equal access to quality education, the Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting and enhancing education for learners with special needs.
Speaking at a capacity-building workshop in Uyo, on Friday the Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr. Hamid Bobboyi, highlighted the ongoing efforts to integrate special needs education into the broader national education framework.
The workshop focused on improving the skills of teachers involved in inclusive education, emphasizing the Federal Government’s financial dedication to this cause.
He said, “Since the commencement of the implementation of the Universal Basic Education programme in Nigeria, adequate attention has been paid to special needs education.
“Two per cent of the federal government Consolidated Revenue Fund dedicated as an intervention fund for the implementation of the UBE programme is allocated to Special Needs Education. This intervention will continue so that more learners can be assisted to break the barrier to quality education.”
“Of the 1,019 Special Basic schools captured during the UBEC 2022/2023 national personnel audit, government schools were 515 with an enrollment of 124,867 learners in basic education. There were 405 private schools with an enrollment of 51,140 learners.”
The Director of Special Programmes at UBEC, Hajia Aisha Abdul, while speaking at the event also praised the initiative, emphasizing the capacity-building efforts for educators.
”Building the capacity for another 1,878 teachers comprising 50 selected teachers from 25 conventional schools and two selected from 14 currently operational SMART schools on inclusive education implementation processes nationwide.” She said.
