Canada, Others Empower Bauchi College of Nursing
891 SBMC members trained
The Canadian government through Global Affairs Canada and its implementing partners World Health Organisation and Population Council have donated three 32-seater buses and learning materials to Bauchi state College of Nursing and Midwifery as part of efforts to ensure adequate human resource for the health sector in the state.
Other items donated included learning materials like kits and models, books, computers, Internet facility with several tutors sent for further training (with 10 yet to come back). All these helped facilitate the partial accreditation of the college.
The Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Christopher Thornley, who visited the state college recently, said Canada is interested in improving the health status of women and children in the state, as well as building capacity of frontline health workers.
Thornley said Global Affairs Canada has invested much in the college to ensure adequate human resource for the health sector. “The visit is therefore to see how items donated are used”, he said.
The high commissioner said Bauchi state has been a worthy partner for the past 15 years, which is why Canada has continued to provide assistance, even as he encouraged the students to study hard and bring a change in the health indices of the state.
Bauchi, he added, has “a high maternal and infant mortality rate, a situation that can only be changed if health workers mobilise women to see the importance of antenatal visit and hospital delivery”.
Acting provost of the college, Hajiya Rekiya Saleh said Global Affairs Canada was instrumental to the take-off of the college as it provided basic equipment and materials that led to partial accreditation by the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria.
The Bauchi state College of Nursing and Midwifery was established in 2011 but academic activities only commenced this year.
Meanwhile, as part of efforts to engender quality and efficient school administration system in Bauchi state, a total of 891 School Base Management Committee (SBMC) members have been trained on effective management of schools to meet international education standard across the state.
The training under the Additional Financing programme was provided by the State Education Programme Investment Project (SEPIP) and is targeting SBMC members for 297 schools in Ganjuwa, Katagum and Toro centres representing the three senatorial areas of the State.
The three-day training, which was specifically organised for SBMC chairmen, Secretaries and treasurers, was to enable the members plan, improve and effectively manage schools in the state.
Declaring the training workshop open, the chairman, Bauchi State Universal Basic Education Board (BASUBEB), Prof. Yahaya Ibraheem Yero said the workshop was meant to improve the SBMC on ways to conduct and manage the school system with a view to taking over schools from the government in the near future.