What Can I do To Help My Child Succeed Academically?

What can I do as a parent to help my child succeed?

A number of parents do not realise that they have a role to play when it comes to helping their children succeed academically.  Many believe its up to the school while some others do not give a care in a world.

However studies show that parents have significant roles to play in their children’s academic performance. The support of a parent and the kind of approach they adopt  can either make or break the educational journey of their kids.

Let’s look at three things parents need to do to make a positive contribution

1.       Nurture and support. The starting point is a loving and caring home environment. Many parents do not realise how important this is. It is important not to talk down or aggressively to your kids as this will only knock their confidence. And can be counter productive

2.       Patience. Following on smoothly from the first point is patience. Not all children develop at the same pace. Some will need time to blossom into wonderful responsible beings in their adolescent years so parents must learn to be patient

3.       Gentle reminders.  We are all prone to forgetting things and therefore need to be reminded at some point in time. When dealing with our children we need to be tactful. For example instead of shouting angrily “have you done your homework? “ The parents can ask gently “ why haven’t you done your homework?” This method allows for a response from the child in question which may shed light on other issues that maybe bothering her.  It is advisable to ask questions in a calm manner in order to give the child the confidence and opportunity to open up.                                                          Courtesy of  www.ExcelInKeySubjects.com

GHANA. Students abandon education to engage in illegal minning

Galamsey, which is locally known in Ghana as the illegal mining activity or mechanism to extract gold and other mineral resources is on the rise. People who engage in such act are known to be independent workers from the known commercial mining companies in the country; hence making their ways illegal.

Under the current Ghana law, it is illegal for those who engage in the galamsey activities to dig on land granted to mining companies as concessions or licenses; hence, they overlook such law and proceed using those lands for small scale illegal mining. After digging deep into the land, they find gold in the free metallic dust form or they process oxide or sulphide gold ore using liquid mercury.

The number of galamseys in Ghana is unknown, but it is believed to be from 20,000 to 50,000 upon which most of them operate in communities where there are substantial reserves of gold deposits and usually within the environs of the larger mining companies.



Most young people, including children, are notable for engaging in such act with the idea of getting ‘quick money’. The women, mostly act as porters for the miners, the men are known to be the doing the digging while the children are also seen at the pit running errand. They have high rates of accidents and are exposed to mercury poisoning from their crude processing methods, but they do not consider these effects.

According to a special report on the cost of galamsey in the country by Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GHEITI), a visit to the illegal small-scale mining areas in the Ashanti and Central regions recently revealed the unbelievable vastness of degraded lands and the pollution of rivers.

Apart from the negative effects of the galamsey activities on their lives, it posses more negative effects on our natural resources, including land and water bodies in the country.

The idea of acquiring money within a simple means has been the motivation behind the children engaging in the illegal mining activities in the mining communities. Most of the young people in such communities do not value the significance of education; hence, choosing galamsey over education.

A report by Daily Guide on May 4, 2015 with the headline “Pupils Abandon School For Galamsey” reflected that, indeed galamsey has become the biggest factor to hinder the children from enjoying their right to education.

It was revealed in the report that, many children of school going age have abandoned classrooms and are now into full scale illegal mining activities, in view of the cash benefits that come with these activities, despite the associated risks.

Moreover, the enrollment figures in most basic schools in the district Daily Guide observed were sharply declining as pupils had put on hold their plans to pursue formal education to chase ‘quick money.’ (Read the story here: http://www.dailyguideghana.com/pupils-abandon-school-for-galamsey/ )

These children, ignore the negative impact of this illegal mining activity and rather concentrate on how and ways to engage in this activity to search for gold. Most of them also imitate their siblings and other elderly people who are also seen ignoring school to do galamsey.



On the other hand, the existence of the illegal mining has gotten to the level where even candidates who are about writing an exam that can guarantee them entrance to the secondary school abandon the exams for galamsey.

According to Rawgist.com, four candidates writing the 2015 Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE) at the Mensonso D/A Junior High School (JHS) in the Adansi South District of the Ashanti Region have abandoned their examinations to engage in illegal Mining activities popularly called ‘Galamsey’.

It was estimated that, out of 253 who registered for the examination, 248 candidates were present as the four male students were said to have abandoned school to join their colleagues at the Galamsey pits. Read more here: http://rawgist.com/2015/06/16/candidates-abandon-bece-for-galamsey-activities )

One can analyze that, most of these young children have not yet understood the significance of education; hence resulting in low attendance of school and low participation in educational activities in the mining communities.

This is indeed a wake-up to the Ghana Education Service (GES), the Ministry of Education, stakeholders and other non-governmental organizations to organize public education in these mining communities to educate the young people on the need to make education a priority.

Read more at: https://www.modernghana.com/news/624126/1/galamsey-takes-over-education-among-children-in-mi.html

Is South Africa's Education System Really In Crisis ?

Culled from www.bbc.co.uk

By Milton NkosiBBC News, Johannesburg

South Africa's minister of education openly admits that the country's schools are in a state of crisis. How did we get here and what needs to be done?

Angie Motshekga did not mince her words when she addressed her colleagues at a recent African National Congress (ANC) gathering.

"If 25% [of students] fail, we must have sleepless nights," she is quoted in local media as saying.

"This is akin to a national crisis."

Not about the money

The shocking statistic is that some 213,000 children failed their end of school examination for the academic year ending last month, out of a total of nearly 800,000.

But that is just half the story, as there is also a massive drop-out rate.

This is not about a lack of funding. In fact, South Africa spends more on education, some 6% of GDP, than any other African country.According to Stellenbosch University's Professor Servaas van der Berg, out of the 1.2 million seven-year-olds who enrolled in Grade 1 in 2002, slightly less than half went on to pass their school-leaving exam, the matric, 11 years later.

But quality education for everyone is not there, as in many global studies South Africa often comes near the bottom in maths and science tests.

The cancer lies deep in the education system and the continuing legacy of apartheid, and parents know this.

'Packed like sardines'

One of the most depressing sites in post-apartheid South Africa is the bussing of black children out of townships like Johannesburg's Soweto.

Children are packed like sardines into mini-buses and driven long distances, some over 30km (19 miles) away, to the schools in the former whites-only suburbs.

Some will be travelling to private schools, but the majority go to the state-funded schools which are better resourced and have better teachers than their equivalents in the townships, mirroring the situation during apartheid.

At that time, the white minority government spent four times more on a white child's education than it did on a black child. This disparity is no longer the case, but the legacy is still there.

Leader of the opposition Democratic Alliance Mmusi Maimane explained the legacy of that system recently when he spoke about the scourge of racism.

"We are entitled to ask why a black child is 100 times more likely than a white child to grow up in poverty," he said.

"We are entitled to ask why a white learner is six times more likely to get into university than a black learner."

Rather than disagree, the education minister chimes in.

"Twenty years down the line we still have the legacy of apartheid," Ms Motshekga told the BBC, "we still have teachers who were not trained for the future".

Poor teaching

There are many schools in the townships and the government has built more schools in these areas since the advent of democracy, but quality teaching and a proper structured learning process is lacking.

The most tragic anecdote of how serious the problem is comes from a World Bank study conducted in rural Limpopo province back in 2010.

The study asked 400 12-year-old students to work out the answer for 7 x 17.

To work it out, the pupils first drew 17 sticks and counted them seven times. Some 130 of the 400 got the right answer.

But when the same question was presented in word form in English, things spiralled downwards.

Researchers asked the students: "If there are seven rows of 17 chairs how many chairs are there?" None of the children answered correctly.

So language and the quality of teachers are huge areas of concern.

There are 11 official languages in South Africa but most teaching is in English, especially for subjects such as maths and science.

Professor John Volmink, chairman of the education quality assurance body Umalusi, has studied the relationship between the language of instruction and how students perform.

"It remains true that candidates writing the examination in a language other than their home language continue to experience great difficulty in interpreting questions and phrasing their responses," he is quoted in the the City Press newspaper as saying.

"Teachers' knowledge of English has to be upgraded. Unless we [support them], results will continue to drop."

All that aside, the education minister is also taking on the unions, who are seen to be part of the problem by appearing unwilling to tackle absenteeism.

Some teachers are not turning up to work for parts of the week, which means that students over time can lose out on months, if not years, of learning.

But Ms Motshekga told the BBC that she wants to take the politics out of education.

"I fight a lot with unions behind closed doors, I don't call the media to make a show of it," she said.

"I do it responsibly in a manner that corrects the wrong but keeps the system together."

'There is hope'

But with all of the above, it is not all doom and gloom. There are schools which continue to produce good grades under some of the most difficult circumstances.

In Sibasa, Limpopo province, where students regularly struggle without some of the most basic equipment, Mbilwi Secondary School achieved a 100% pass rate for the school leaving exam.

And there are many private schools that are producing well-educated students every year.

As Mr Van der Berg aptly put it: "We don't want people who made it in spite of the system."

The Quality Of An Education System Cannot Exceed The Quality Of Its Teachers

To improve the quality of education in Africa and other developing countries, we must all operate from the standpoint that teachers are critical the development of our education system.

Here are excerpts from an article by Ara Santiago- Teacher Quality: A new teaching force culled from the Inter-American Development Bank website.

The current literature supports the fact that teachers are the main driver of in-school effects on student attainment. Further, it provides evidence on the difference made by a good and effective teacher; counteracting other negative effects, such as a disadvantaged background 



Teachers are the essential link in the chain from education spending to student learning, so improving teacher effectiveness is a critical component for improving student outcomes. Teacher effectiveness in turn depends on: (a) skills and knowledge – whether they know what to teach and the best way to teach it, and (b) teacher behavior in the classroom – whether they do their best to apply what they know? 

The context in which teachers work has significantly changed over the past decade, yet teaching has not been sufficiently adapted to these new situations: teachers basically continue to have the same preparation and toolkit that they had before. Unless actions to update teaching to the new environment take place, there will not be a substantial improvement in quality in the system and corresponding reduction in inequalities.

This implies a new challenge to update the profession in a rapidly changing environment and in the unlikely perspective of increases in spending as those of the past decade. The improvement of human resources (i.e. teachers, technical staff, and principals) has become the main education-related concern for most countries in LAC

http://www.iadb.org

Are Single-Sex Schools or Mixed Schools The Way Forward?

Culled from www.telegraph.co.uk

Do boys and girls benefit from being taught together? Richard Cairns, head of Brighton College, says 'yes', Helen Fraser, chief executive of the Girls’ Day School Trust, says 'no'

By Richard Cairns, Helen Fraser

8:59AM GMT 17 Mar 2015

182 Comments

As Tony Little, the headmaster of Eton, says that single-sex education allows students to "be themselves" until later in life, we ask two leading figures in education for their opinions.

See who you agree with, take part in our poll at the end and join the debate.

Richard Cairns is head of Brighton College in East Sussex, which was named UK School of the Year 2013-14 at the Independent Schools Awards

Open any school prospectus and you’ll see the same vision outlined: to prepare children for adult life, both academically and socially. And yet, some people still seem to believe this can be achieved in the highly artificial environment of a single-sex school. I find it very curious.

Whether you’re starting a degree or embarking on a career, it’s obviously vital that you’re able to get on well with people of both genders.

Recent research published in the American journal Science suggests that women who attended single-sex colleges were “compromised in the workplace as their ability to network and cooperate with men was inhibited”.

This is hardly surprising. In a coeducational school such as Brighton College, boys and girls learn together, converse together and grow into adulthood together. They’re at ease with one another and, in my personal experience, more at ease with themselves.

I’ve worked in both single sex and mixed schools, and know there are good schools of both types. But it has always struck me that mixed schools are much kinder places. There’s little of the emotional intensity that bedevils girls’ schools and often leads to bullying — interestingly, when I ask girls from single-sex schools why they’re keen to join the sixth form at Brighton College, this is what they tend to tell me.

Nor is there the sense that you get at some all-boys schools that only those who play in the First XV are relevant. At mixed schools boys are much more likely to dance, sing and act. In my first week here, I witnessed a rather gentle young man being lauded by a group of girls for his performance in a play.

y.

^{In mixed schools, pupils are at ease with one another and with themselves}

Everyone respects — and, indeed, admires — each other, which is a wonderful thing to witness.

It used to be argued that girls do better academically — particularly in stereotypically “male” subjects — when there are no boys around to distract or inhibit them. But decades of research in the UK and further afield has cast serious doubt on this.

The Science research I mentioned earlier reports that such arguments relied on “weak, cherrypicked or misconstrued scientific claims” and that, in fact, there is evidence “sex segregation increases gender stereotyping and legitimises institutional sexism”.

And the real reason some all-girls schools have a strong track record in traditionally “masculine” subjects, such as physics, is that they’re highly selective institutions. Quite simply, clever girls are more likely to study physics than those of average ability. Whether they are sharing classes with boys is a much less significant factor.

It was Plato who first argued that boys and girls should be taught together. I suspect he’d be thrilled by the direction in which things are moving. Even in the independent sector, seen as the last bastion of segregated schooling, only 10 per cent of boys and 16pc of girls are now educated in single-sex schools. And that number is likely to fall further.

There are now a third fewer girls’ schools and half as many boys’ schools as there were 20 years ago — a trend surely set to continue.

Nothing could be more natural, nor more sensible."

Helen Fraser is chief executive of the Girls’ Day School Trust (GDST), the UK’s leading network of independent girls’ schools

I’m often asked “Why should I choose a single-sex school?” From a purely personal perspective, I benefited enormously from attending one — as did my daughters and step-daughters. But our experiences are backed up by the research: extensive studies have shown that, for a variety of reasons, girls’ learning needs are simply different from boys’.

In the classroom, girls tend to prefer cooperative, discussion-based learning, focused on real-world scenarios. They’re usually better equipped to plan and organise their work, and take well to projects, too.

There will always be exceptions but on the whole, in a mixed classroom, boys tend to dominate discussions, frequently putting themselves forward as leaders in group activities. Girls, meanwhile, are inclined to hold back.

It follows that teachers will, subconsciously, try to play to boys’ strengths in order to get the best out of them. So it’s really only in single-sex environments that girls can take centre stage.

Read the conclusion 

2016 Budget. Nigeria Votes lion share to education

• Capital expenditure increases from N557bn to N1.8trn
• Recurrent N4.28bn, deficit N2.2trn
• 2016 Budget a joke – Prof Utomi

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday unveiled the sum of N6.08 trillion as budget estimate for the 2016 fiscal year before a joint session of the National Assembly.
The proposed budget, with a revenue projection of N3.86 trillion, gave critical attention to Education, Defence, Health and the Power sectors, which received the lion share of the appropriation.
In ensuring that the fiscal policy impacts positively on mass of the Nigerian people, Buhari said, “We will devote a significant portion of our recurrent expenditure to institutions that provide critical government services.”
To that effect, the president said the sum of N369.6 billion has been voted for Education; N294.5 billion (Defence) ; and N221.7 billion (Health), adding that, “This will ensure our teachers, armed forces personnel, doctors, nurses, police men, fire fighters, prison service officers and many more critical service providers are paid competitively and on time.”
The budget however indicates a deficit of N2.22 trillion, equivalent to 2.16% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP.

While delivering his speech, President Buhari explained that the deficit would take the country’s overall debt profile to 14% of its GDP.
He pointed out that after reviewing the trends in the global oil industry, a benchmark price of $38 per barrel and a production estimate of 2.2 million barrels per day were arrived at.
The president hinted that in 2016, oil related revenues are expected to contribute N820 billion, while non-oil revenues, comprising Company Income Tax (CIT); Value Added Tax (VAT); Customs and Excise duties and Federation Account levies, would contribute N1.45 trillion.
In specific terms, the president emphasised that government would focus on non-oil revenues by broadening the tax base and improving the effectiveness of revenue collecting agencies, with a view to diversifying the economy.
Buhari said the 2016 budget was basically designed not only to revive the economy, but to also deliver inclusive growth to Nigerians and create a significant number of jobs.
The President also stated that, as an emergency measure to address the chronic shortage of teachers in public schools across the country, there is plan to partner with state and local governments to recruit, train and deploy 500,000 unemployed graduates and NCE holders.
He maintained that, to deliver its development objectives, government has increased the capital expenditure portion of the budget from N557 billion in the 2015 budget to N1.8 trillion in the 2016 budget.
Explaining further, the President said the increased capital expenditure in the 2016 fiscal policy commits significant resources to critical sectors such as Works, Power and Housing (N433.4 billion); Transport (N202.0 billion); Special Intervention Programmes (N200.0 billion); Defence (N134.6 billion); and Interior (N53.1 billion).
This, according to him, will stimulate the economy and make it more competitive by focusing on infrastructural development; delivering inclusive growth and prioritizing the welfare of Nigerians.

…2016 budget to create half a million teaching jobs
President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said the 2016 budget will create jobs in all sectors of the economy, with education alone employing half a million teachers.
Senate also approved and passed his request to allow capital budget of 2015 to extend to March 2016, meaning that the implementation of the 2016 budget will start from March 2016.
Buhari, who made this known while presenting his 2016 budget estimates at the joint session of the National Assembly, pledged that the federal government will invest to safeguard lives and properties of Nigerians in order for them to operate in secure environments.
Also, he added that the federal government is ready to work in the interest of Nigerians and will fight for the protection of its citizens.
He said: “We assure Nigerians that our 2016 borrowings will be properly directed while N1.36 trillion has been provided for foreign and productive aspects.
“We are here to serve and indeed Nigerians will get a service they have longed for and rightfully deserve.”
However, while assuring Nigerians that the trust bestowed in the government is not breached, he also suggested that the Nigeria economy needs to find other means of revenue apart from oil.
“This budget is a major step in delivering. We have demonstrated a strong will to fight corruption.
“We implemented the Treasury Single Account which has provided greater visibility to revenue and cash flow,” he added.
Bukola Saraki, the Senate President said the 2016 budget must be bold and pragmatic in providing transparent incentives and conducive environment that will prime private sector-led development, encourage local production and promote made-in Nigeria goods.
“The National Assembly has a critical role to play and we recognize this role. On the budget we are willing and ready to provide the scrutiny necessary to pass only a budget that can be implemented comprehensively to the letter,” he said.

…2016 budget, a joke – Utomi
Meanwhile, Nigerian economist, Professor Pat Utomi stated that the 2016 national budget presented to the National Assembly was ‘a joke’.
President Muhammadu Buhari had presented the 2016 national budget which is estimated at over six trillion to the joint session of the National Assembly yesterday.
“Putting it in a very awkward position, I consider the budget process a joke,” he said.
Utomi who spoke on a national Television yesterday said the issue is not about making luxurious budget but argued that the major deterrent is always implementation.
“We somehow do not have the discipline of the budget process, we go through budget as public relations exercises because they are supposed to be done and decision makers go ahead to do whatever they want to do,” he said.
Proffering solutions to the problem of budget implementation, Professor Utomi said that “the goal is to achieve an execution premium, but if those who are responsible for it (the budget) really had no plan whatsoever to follow the budget, then, you are wasting your time.
“When those who are responsible for it do not see long term goals in which the budget is just a piece in an unfolding set of activities that would reach a certain goal, there is no point of it.
“I think, what has happened to us is that we got to a point of disconnect between the leadership elite, the political class, the bureaucratic elite and development aspirations of the Nigeria people,” he said.
Professor Utomi further said that the major reason why the budget isn’t working in Nigeria is ‘leadership’.
“There is low energy in leadership. We are not leading the country in the right direction.
“What the country is dealing with is a huge financing gap; we used to earn so much and now, we are earning this much, if we pretend that nothing has changed, then we would go into an economic spiral,” he added.

• Capital expenditure increases from N557bn to N1.8trn
• Recurrent N4.28bn, deficit N2.2trn
• 2016 Budget a joke – Prof Utomi

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday unveiled the sum of N6.08 trillion as budget estimate for the 2016 fiscal year before a joint session of the National Assembly.
The proposed budget, with a revenue projection of N3.86 trillion, gave critical attention to Education, Defence, Health and the Power sectors, which received the lion share of the appropriation.
In ensuring that the fiscal policy impacts positively on mass of the Nigerian people, Buhari said, “We will devote a significant portion of our recurrent expenditure to institutions that provide critical government services.”
To that effect, the president said the sum of N369.6 billion has been voted for Education; N294.5 billion (Defence) ; and N221.7 billion (Health), adding that, “This will ensure our teachers, armed forces personnel, doctors, nurses, police men, fire fighters, prison service officers and many more critical service providers are paid competitively and on time.”
The budget however indicates a deficit of N2.22 trillion, equivalent to 2.16% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP.
While delivering his speech, President Buhari explained that the deficit would take the country’s overall debt profile to 14% of its GDP.
He pointed out that after reviewing the trends in the global oil industry, a benchmark price of $38 per barrel and a production estimate of 2.2 million barrels per day were arrived at.
The president hinted that in 2016, oil related revenues are expected to contribute N820 billion, while non-oil revenues, comprising Company Income Tax (CIT); Value Added Tax (VAT); Customs and Excise duties and Federation Account levies, would contribute N1.45 trillion.
In specific terms, the president emphasised that government would focus on non-oil revenues by broadening the tax base and improving the effectiveness of revenue collecting agencies, with a view to diversifying the economy.
Buhari said the 2016 budget was basically designed not only to revive the economy, but to also deliver inclusive growth to Nigerians and create a significant number of jobs.
The President also stated that, as an emergency measure to address the chronic shortage of teachers in public schools across the country, there is plan to partner with state and local governments to recruit, train and deploy 500,000 unemployed graduates and NCE holders.
He maintained that, to deliver its development objectives, government has increased the capital expenditure portion of the budget from N557 billion in the 2015 budget to N1.8 trillion in the 2016 budget.
Explaining further, the President said the increased capital expenditure in the 2016 fiscal policy commits significant resources to critical sectors such as Works, Power and Housing (N433.4 billion); Transport (N202.0 billion); Special Intervention Programmes (N200.0 billion); Defence (N134.6 billion); and Interior (N53.1 billion).
This, according to him, will stimulate the economy and make it more competitive by focusing on infrastructural development; delivering inclusive growth and prioritizing the welfare of Nigerians.

…2016 budget to create half a million teaching jobs
President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said the 2016 budget will create jobs in all sectors of the economy, with education alone employing half a million teachers.
Senate also approved and passed his request to allow capital budget of 2015 to extend to March 2016, meaning that the implementation of the 2016 budget will start from March 2016.
Buhari, who made this known while presenting his 2016 budget estimates at the joint session of the National Assembly, pledged that the federal government will invest to safeguard lives and properties of Nigerians in order for them to operate in secure environments.
Also, he added that the federal government is ready to work in the interest of Nigerians and will fight for the protection of its citizens.
He said: “We assure Nigerians that our 2016 borrowings will be properly directed while N1.36 trillion has been provided for foreign and productive aspects.
“We are here to serve and indeed Nigerians will get a service they have longed for and rightfully deserve.”
However, while assuring Nigerians that the trust bestowed in the government is not breached, he also suggested that the Nigeria economy needs to find other means of revenue apart from oil.
“This budget is a major step in delivering. We have demonstrated a strong will to fight corruption.
“We implemented the Treasury Single Account which has provided greater visibility to revenue and cash flow,” he added.
Bukola Saraki, the Senate President said the 2016 budget must be bold and pragmatic in providing transparent incentives and conducive environment that will prime private sector-led development, encourage local production and promote made-in Nigeria goods.
“The National Assembly has a critical role to play and we recognize this role. On the budget we are willing and ready to provide the scrutiny necessary to pass only a budget that can be implemented comprehensively to the letter,” he said.

…2016 budget, a joke – Utomi
Meanwhile, Nigerian economist, Professor Pat Utomi stated that the 2016 national budget presented to the National Assembly was ‘a joke’.
President Muhammadu Buhari had presented the 2016 national budget which is estimated at over six trillion to the joint session of the National Assembly yesterday.
“Putting it in a very awkward position, I consider the budget process a joke,” he said.
Utomi who spoke on a national Television yesterday said the issue is not about making luxurious budget but argued that the major deterrent is always implementation.
“We somehow do not have the discipline of the budget process, we go through budget as public relations exercises because they are supposed to be done and decision makers go ahead to do whatever they want to do,” he said.
Proffering solutions to the problem of budget implementation, Professor Utomi said that “the goal is to achieve an execution premium, but if those who are responsible for it (the budget) really had no plan whatsoever to follow the budget, then, you are wasting your time.
“When those who are responsible for it do not see long term goals in which the budget is just a piece in an unfolding set of activities that would reach a certain goal, there is no point of it.
“I think, what has happened to us is that we got to a point of disconnect between the leadership elite, the political class, the bureaucratic elite and development aspirations of the Nigeria people,” he said.
Professor Utomi further said that the major reason why the budget isn’t working in Nigeria is ‘leadership’.
“There is low energy in leadership. We are not leading the country in the right direction.
“What the country is dealing with is a huge financing gap; we used to earn so much and now, we are earning this much, if we pretend that nothing has changed, then we would go into an economic spiral,” he added.

- See more at: http://nigerianpilot.com/2016-budget-education-health-get-lion-share/#sthash.I3A01vTx.dpuf

Nigerian Government Declares Free Higher Education

President Muhammadu Buhari has assured that there will be free eduction for science, technology and education students in tertiary institutions.

 Buhari gave the assurance Tuesday while presenting the 2016 Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the National Assembly.

President Buhari stressed that this would indeed mark a historic milestone for us as a nation.

 Buhari said his administration would unveil a conditional cash transfer programme for the poorest and most vulnerable.

 The president said the full programme would be presented in the coming weeks and that it would include home-grown public primary school feeding.

"Furthermore, through the office of the Vice President, we are working with various development partners to design an implementable and transparent conditional cash transfer program for the poorest and most vulnerable.

 "This program will be implemented in phases. Already, the compilation of registers of the poorest persons is ongoing.

 "In the coming weeks, we will present the full programme which will include our home-grown public primary school feeding and free education for science, technology and education students in our tertiary institutions.

 "Indeed, this will mark a historic milestone for us as a nation", President Buhari said.

 Read more at http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/news/buhari-declares-free-higher-education/125583.html#fXGwpRWDLlWTPPQt.99