By Collins Agwam Ahead of Education Summit billed to hold in 2016, Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, has inaugurated a six-man planning committee.
Governor Okowa while inaugurating the committee Tuesday in Asaba, stated that “a good educational system has the capacity to produce transformed individuals in the sense that they are equipped with the knowledge and skills to develop the society they live in and make a success of their careers and lives.”
He stated that organising an education summit has become necessary to check the falling standards and noticeable deficiencies in our present education system in the state and the country in general.
While stating that the theme of the summit which would hold in the first quarter of 2016 is, “Leap Frogging Education in Delta State,” the Governor said the committee which has former Commissioner in the state, Prof. Patrick Muoboghare as Chairman and Mr Vincent Magboma as Secretary, should consider “learning goals, value orientation, social transformation, community participation, learning climate, service learning and centre of excellence,” while choosing resource persons for the summit.
Buttressing the need for the summit, Governor Okowa said it was part of his campaign promises to refocus the curricula of schools in the state. The Governor asserted that, “there is a sense of realisation that our present educational system is grossly deficient and out of touch with the realities of the 21stcentury society; in fact, those who say we should declare state of emergency in our education sector are speaking the minds of many Nigerians.”
“In today’s knowledge economy, education, not oil or natural resources has become the competitive edge of serious countries all over the world; the meteoric rise of countries like Singapore, Malaysia, China and South Korea that have leapfrogged other third world nations and joined the elite leage of developed nations is due largely to the development of their human capital,” the Governor observed.
He noted that human resources accounts for 65 per cent of a nation’s socio-economic development.
Responding on behalf of members of the committee which include, Hon. Chiedu Ebie, Sir Jude Sinebe, Mrs Pat Ejeteh, (Prof.) Mrs Mary Edema and Mr Jackson Ekwugum, the chairman of the committee, Prof. Muoboghare thanked Governor Okowa for deeming them fit to serve in the committee, noting that the committee has capable members to plan for the summit.
