Responsibility for basic education delivery rests with states, LGs –Dr Bobboyi
By Uji A Iliyasu
Abuja
The Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Hammid Bobboyi, said the states and local governments in the country have statutory responsibility for the delivery of effective basic education in the country, and that UBEC’s major role is intervention in the form of assistance to the states and local governments in Nigeria for the purposes of uniform and qualitative basic education throughout the country.
Dr Hammid stated this in his speech at the Two-day Meeting of UBEC Management with Zonal Directors, Officers in the Directorate Cadre and State Coordinators on Strengthening Zonal and State Officers for Improved Efficiency and Productivity held at the UBEC Digital Resource Centre , Abuja on 26 September, 2024.
“The Commission’s major roles in the UBE implementation process include the regulation and coordination of the programme implementation. In addition to these, the Commission disburses Federal Government UBE Intervention Fund to States, sets standards and monitors to ensure that these are maintained and that the Federal Government UBE fund is judiciously utilised in line with the Commission’s guidelines.
“I believe that you are all aware that the States and Local Governments are constitutional responsibility for UBE delivery in Nigeria. The Federal Government is only intervening, through its agency, the Universal Basic Education Commission,
in the form of assistance to the States and Local Governments in Nigeria for the purposes of uniform and qualitative basic education throughout Nigeria.
“This means that basic education implementation is taking place in the States and by the States. The Commission’s major roles in the UBE implementation process include the regulation and coordination of the programme implementation. In addition to these, the Commission disburses Federal Government UBE Intervention Fund to States, sets standards and monitors to ensure that these are maintained and that the Federal Government UBE fund is judiciously utilised in line with the Commission’s guidelines, ” Bobboyi said.
According to Bobboyi’s speech, the Commission is also required to work closely with and support the states and local government UBE agencies, the FCT Universal Basic Education Boards and the Local Government Education Authorities (LGEAs) in the programme implementation.
“To effectively discharge its mandates and ensure functional relationship with the SUBEBS, LGEAs and UBE stakeholders across the country, it became incumbent on the Commission to establish an implementation structure which will bring it closer to where basic education implementation is taking place. This need informed the establishment of UBEC Zonal and State Offices.
“There is a Zonal Office in each of the Geo-poilitical zones, a Sub-zonal office in the FCT, and a State Office in each of the remaining States without the Zonal Office. The functions and responsibilities of the Zonal and State Offices were clearly defined with emphasis on the promotion of cooperation and synergy between the Headquarters and the field offices.
“The arrangement worked smoothly, harmoniously, efficiently and effectively to the overall advantage of the Commission.
“The field offices functioned as the required link between the Commission and the SUBEBs and UBE stakeholders at the State and Local Government level. They monitored projects and other school activities and provided feedback to Headquarters to facilitate informed decision making.”
Bobboyi, however, said in the course of time, it was observed that the Zonal and State Offices were becoming incapacitated, that the functions of the field offices were gradually usurped and concentrated in headquarters.
“For example, the Headquarters became comfortable sending staff members from Abuja to the fields to perform assignments that the Zonal and State Offices were established to perform. It got to a level that staff members sent from Headquarters to the States will not bother to visit the Zonal and State offices to announce their presence in the States.
“The Commission’s Departments will implement activities in the States without the knowledge and participation of the UBEC State Offices. Project and other monitoring activities, which are among the Commission’s major functions also suffered. The staff members in the Headquarters were known to engage their colleagues in the field offices to monitor projects and activities for which they were fully paid to perform.
“This led to the submission of inaccurate reports which resulted in payments being made for shoddy jobs and uncompleted projects.”
He said the effects of the negative developments erodes the degree of the efficiency and image of the Commission as a whole as well as promoting redundancy and absenteeism among the staff members in the field offices, which
reduces the morale of staff members in the field offices.
“It was these developments that triggered the decision of the Management to review its implementation structure, arriving at the critical decision that some reorganisation is necessary and urgent and that one of the key areas that should receive immediate attention is the strengthening of the Zonal and State Offices and empowering them to perform the functions assigned to them when they were established.
“It is necessary at this juncture to emphasise that there is only one Commission with Departments, Units and field offices created to work together towards facilitating the achievement of its mandates.
“It will amount to waste of resources if, for whatever reasons, these departments, units and field offices are not working together in harmony with our eyes focused on the set goal of the Commission.
“Your presence at this meeting is, therefore, to deliberate on the guidelines and strategies we have developed to assist in turning things around in the Zonal and State offices. I look forward to your active involvement and participation in the meeting, frankly sharing your experience as field officers and suggesting what other steps we can take to make the reorganisation effective.
“I assure you all of Management support in the areas of staffing and staff training, provision of working tools, decent office accommodation, funding, transportation, and others which we are aware are essential for productive work. However, because of the quantum of resources required to put these in place, their implementation will be phased.
“I wish to crave the indulgence of all of you here, especially the field officers, to take leadership in ensuring that this reorganisation succeeds at your levels. When you see anything capable of impeding the achievement of our goal, you have a responsibility to use the existing channel of communication to draw attention to it for immediate remedial action. Otherwise, you may be held responsible should anything untoward occur. For the officers in the Headquarters you are equally to ensure that the guidelines are strictly followed. You have to share responsibilities as defined, let go of those that are fully devolved to the field offices and ensure synergy.”