UBEC approves N2.7bn for communities nationwide

The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) says it has approved N2.7 billion intervention fund to support basic education across communities in Nigeria under its SchoolBased Management Committee/School Improvement Programme (SBMC-SIP).

Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr Hamid Bobboyi, disclosed this yesterday in Lokoja during the opening of a five-day “master trainers workshop on the implementation of SBMC-SIP” organised for UBEC social mobilisation officers, SUBEB directors of social mobilisation and SBMC desk officers from across the 36 states and FCT.

Bobboyi, represented by UBEC’s Director of Social Mobilisation, Alhaji Bello Kagara, said a total of 2,505 communities would be supported under its macro, micro and special cases project categories this year alone with an expected output of 5,010 classrooms at the end of the day.

According to him, the SBMCs approach would serve as a vehicle for facilitating grassroots advocacy, sensitisation and mobilisation in favour of school development, community ownership of schools, improved enrolment and retention of all categories of children in schools.

He said the workshop was designed to acquaint the participants with the concept, project types, eligible activities, funding arrangements and implementation strategies of the SBMCSIP.

Bobboyi urged the participants to demonstrate strong commitment and devote their time throughout the period of the workshop so as to ensure they derive optimum benefits that would add value to their work and ensure attainment of the programme’s targets/ objectives.