Sokoto State Government to Employ 10,000 Teachers

The Sokoto State Government is to employ no fewer than 10,000 qualified teachers, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of the state has said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Tambuwal made the disclosure on Monday at a media chat organised to mark the 2016 Democracy Day in Sokoto.

The governor said this was part of the recommendations in a report of a technical committee he had earlier set up to advise the government on the education sector

The governor said that the committee was headed by Professor Riskuwa Shehu, the immediate past Vice Chancellor of Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.

”The State Government set up the committee as part of the measures to improve the standard of the education sector in the state,” Tambuwal added.

Tambuwal said, “according to the committee’s report, we are short of no fewer than 10,000 qualified teachers in the state.

“We will do everything possible in moving our standard of education forward in order to guarantee a productive citizenry in the state. The government will also cover the training and retraining of teachers in line with the global trend of making education a priority,” he said.

He stated that the state of emergency on education already declared in the state would remain until the government achieved the desired standard.

Tambuwal also added that the committee had recommended the construction of additional 6,000 classrooms in the state.

According to him, the government will implement the committee’s report, so as to generally improve the education sector in the state.

He called on the people of the state to always complement the efforts of the government in funding education at all levels.

Tambuwal urged the people to jealously guard all ongoing projects as well as assist the government in their routine maintenance.

The Governor also said that the state would collaborate with investors in Europe and China in order to improve power supply in the state.

According to Tambuwal, the foreign investors are going to focus on the use of solar energy and wind power to generate more energy for the state. He said:

Already, five companies have shown interest in the proposed project and discussions are on with them.

The issue of power is key and fundamental to the sustenance of every society, as it can boost socioeconomic development.

The state’s independent power project has also reached between 80 and 85 per cent completion stage and it will provide about 38 megawatts upon completion.

According to him, the State Government is partnering the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP), which is currently executing some projects across the state.