Edo-BEST transforming education sector – Obaseki

…says govt will protect indigenous languages from extinction

Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said that the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (Edo-BEST) programme, an initiative of his administration, is yielding positive outcomes, as pupils in the pilot primary schools can now read, write and add their sums correctly.

Obaseki said this on Tuesday, when he received members of the board of Centre for Edo Studies, of the Benson Idahosa University, who paid him a courtesy visit in Government House, Benin City.

He explained that the feedback from the 300 pilot schools deployed for the Edo-BEST programme showed that the primary school pupils can now read and write.

The governor added that his administration and the palace of the Benin Monarch are worried about the challenges posed by the low premium attached to the state’s indigenous languages, and are looking at ways to propagate Edo history and language in schools across the state.

He disclosed that at the recent retreat by members of the state’s executive council at the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and added that “the focus was on how to transform the education sector in the state.”

“We are strengthening our basic education sector as we are presently training 5,000 basic education teachers in addition to the 2,000 we trained a few months ago,” the governor said.

He expressed his administration’s willingness to partner with the Centre for Edo Studies to include some of the Edo books authored by the center in the state’s school curriculum.

“Our focus is not only on Edo language but also on Afemai and Esan languages,” he said.

Earlier, the leader of delegation and Pro-Chancellor of Benson Idahosa University, Dr. Goodie Isibor, commended the governor for his developmental strides across the state.

He harped on the need to develop Edo language in schools in the state, and stressed that “Edo has a rich history, language and culture but we are not doing enough to make it popular across the world.”

He called on the government and the traditional institution to promote the use of Edo language in homes and make it compulsory in schools.