NSSEC, SSEB Collaborate to Improve Quality of Secondary Education

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

The Executive Secretary of the National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), Dr. Benjamin Abakpa, has expressed optimism that the collaboration and synergy between NSSEC) and the State Senior Secondary Education Boards(SSEB) will undoubtedly improve the quality of senior secondary schools, especially in the areas of Science, Technical, Vocational and entrepreneurial education in the country.

As part of its resolve and determination to reposition the education sector, the Federal Government established the National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC) to serve as a regulatory and intervention agency for secondary education in Nigeria.

Abakpa spoke in his welcome address at the advocacy and sensitisation forum on establishing National Senior Secondary Education Commission for stakeholders from the North-East geopolitical zone held at Command Guest House, Bauchi.

Abakpa said that only the senior secondary education has no functional regulatory and intervention agency, hence the establishment of NSSEC with the Minister for Education, Malam Adamu Adamu.

In his keynote address, Dr. Aliyu Tilde, Bauchi Commissioner for Education, said NSSEC would be the UBEC of senior secondary schools. He said the commission would take over 95 per cent of the work of State Ministries of Education (SMEs) in senior secondary Schools, adding that SMEs would henceforth not be involved in running secondary schools but SSSEB.

Tilde, who lamented the roles of corrupt officials and politicians in handling contracts, said, “But as far as contracts are concerned, many officials and politicians will smile at the banks.”

He added, “Unfortunately, this is the same money that has overwhelmed SUBEBs with unnecessary attention from politicians, corrupted its officials and diverted it from critical education management work, thereby leaving our basic schools unattended to.”