Category: Uncategorized

By Moses Emorinken, Abuja

As of yesterday, a total of 1,880,788 eligible Nigerians have been vaccinated with the first dose of AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine in the first phase of vaccination, according to the latest data from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).

Also, eight states have reached 100 per cent of their target population. The states are Cross River, 111 per cent; Kwara, 107 per cent; Lagos, 106; Ekiti, 104 per cent; FCT, 103 per cent; Gombe, 101 per cent; Rivers, 101 per cent; and Zamfara, 100 per cent.

Read Also: Nigeria launches social behavioural change campaign

Lagos, FCT, Kano and Kaduna have so far vaccinated the highest number of people- 295,013; 127,424; 92,784; and 91,448 respectively. This brings the proportion of Nigerians vaccinated with their first dose in this first phase to 93.5 per cent.

Nigeria has launched the National Social Behaviour Change Campaign as part of the efforts to prevent and contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The campaign tagged the Powerful H.A.N.D.S is a joint collaboration between the Federal Government and the United Nations in Nigeria with funding from the European Union (EU).

H.A.N.D.S-is expected to stimulate collective actions to prevent further spread of COVID-19 in Nigeria.   The campaign is being implemented through the Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI), an indigenous SBC organisation with technical support from the United Nations Children’s Funds (UNICEF).

The nationwide campaign will entail mass media, digital media (also suitable for visually and hearing-impaired) and targeted community/school engagement activities in six states of Lagos, Oyo, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau, Rivers and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). CCSI will be collaborating with the Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) pillars in the target states to engage prominent stakeholders in two hot spot LGAs to promote the key behaviours of the campaign to prevent further transmission of the COVID-19. The campaign is also featuring a unique Super Hero, “Captain Bubbles” for young children to promote the habit of handwashing and other key hygiene practices with an animated video and theme song.

Read Also: Buhari seeks debt relief, COVID-19 vaccines for Africa

The goal of the four-month, UNICEF-funded campaign is to increase the number of Nigerians who believe in and practise COVID-19 preventive behaviours, while communicating the main message that “The power to stop COVID-19 is in our H.A.N.D.S.”

The United Nation’s Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mr Edward Kallon said: “The UN remains committed to working closely with the government and the people of Nigeria to end the COVID-19 pandemic through evidence-based, innovative and effective interventions such as the H.A.N.D.S campaign.

“There is no better time than now to empower and encourage people to sustain the practice of preventive behaviours to protect themselves and loved ones from the scourge of COVID-19. We are optimistic that this campaign will rekindle families, friends and children’s efforts to contain the transmission of COVID19. “

The Director-General, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu has warned against complacency.

He said Nigerians cannot afford to be complacent as the virus is still around and hence the need to adhere strictly to the COVID-19 protocols such as H.A.N.D.S.

He added that other measures such as travel bans and restrictions have been put in place to prevent the third wave from happening.

He said it is in the hands of every Nigerian to protect themselves by observing the social behavioural change.

Kofoworola Belo-Osagie

Chairman, Lagos State House of Assembly House Committee on Establishment and Training, Yinka Ogundimu has thrown his weight behind calls for Local Government autonomy, saying it would boost basic education delivery at the grassroots.

Ogundimu who was guest speaker at the 28th national conference of the National Association of Local Government Education Secretaries of Nigeria (NAESN) which opened at the Lagos State Basic Education Board (LASUBEB) Hall on Tuesday, said though the law stipulates that the LGAs should administer education at the primary and junior secondary levels, the lack of autonomy hampers them from performing the role.

He said: “I was having the discussion with the .NAESN President and he mentioned it in his speech. I told him that the local government must take over their responsibilities. The responsibility of the local government is to fund the primary education and how do we do this? There is a department in the local government called education department. What are their duties? Primary education should be part of the duty that should be entrenched in their yearly budget but they have taken the easy way out – Adult Education but the primary education should be part of it.”

Ogundimu, a former education secretary, said if legislative and judiciary workers could fight for autonomy, then LGAs deserved autonomy.  He urged the participants to call for the amendment of the law.

In his opening remarks, chairman, LASUBEB, Mr. Wahab Alawiye-King said the programme was vital given that education is the responsibility of the three tiers of governments and therefore needs collaborative administration to succeed.

“The importance of a gathering such as this underscores your association’s pivotal role to effective and efficient service delivery and the fact that you are all well abreast of this crucial mandate.  Education is a shared responsibility of the three tiers of government – that is the federal, state and local government – thus there is need for sufficient inter-agency and intergovernmental collaboration.

“Considering the enormous tasks and facilities needed for effective performance, there is a need for a collaboration and partnership approach, hence the theme of this year’s conference is apt.  It seeks to engage with the challenges facing effective collaboration to complement the various agencies and stakeholders in the Universal Basic Education sector.  Education Secretaries as grassroots managers’ partners have been involved such areas as capacity building and the strengthening of personnel and institutions executing different initiatives,” he said.

National President, NAESN, Dr. Hassan Sule, said in an interview that the aim of the conference was to deliberate how to keep school children in school, build capacity of teachers, and how to improve infrastructure to boost learning outcomes.

The programme was attended by education secretaries across the country, was graced by some dignitaries, including the President, Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Alabi kolade David; the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Education, Mrs. Abosede Adelaja; the Lagos State Education Commissioner, Mrs. Folasade Adefisayo, represented by the Director, Basic Education Services, Mrs. Margaret Fagunrosi; the chairman, House committee on education, Okanlawon Sanni represented by Mr. Kumuyi Temitope, Chairman, Abia SUBEB, Elder Josiah Okechukwu, among others.

By Kofoworola Belo-Osagie

Oyo State Governor Oluseyi Abiodun Makinde is expected to headline a virtual fundraiser for Dominican University Ibadan on Saturday.

Makinde is expected to be joined by former Anambra State Government and Vice Presidential candidate in the last elections, Mr. Peter Obi; chairman of Seplat, Dr. A.B.C Orjiako; chairman of Airpeace, Allen Onyema, and Managing Director, Zinox Group, Mr. Leo Eke to raise funds for the institution’s faculty of social science building.

Chairman of the event planning committee, Mrs. Emmanuella Otiono said funds generated from the exercise would be judiciously utilised for the construction of the Social Science building at the University’s permanent site, Omotosho Campus, in Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo State

Mrs. Otiono said distinguished Nigerians with passion for good education had been invited to grace the event and “support the formation of a new generation of future leaders that will pass through the university.”

She said the university grew out of Dominican Institute, which was affiliated to the University of Ibadan in 1993.

The Dominican University was granted a provincial licence by Nigeria Universities Commission in November 2016 and began academic activities in October 2017. The university was granted a full statutory licence on June 10, 2020.

The university is owned by the Order of Preachers (OP), popularly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, a religious order in the Catholic Church. The order was founded in 1216 by a Spanish priest, Dominic de Guzman.

The Dominican University Ibadan, is its first university in Africa in its over 800 years of existence and involvement in tertiary education.

Mrs Otiono said the university would graduate its pioneer students this year.

The Plateau State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the not-for-profit organisation, Universal Learning Solutions (ULS), are working in partnership to deliver intensive training to the teachers and government officials under the Teacher Professional Development initiative.

Training for 2,625 primary school teachers and 50 officials from 17 Local Governments Areas spanned two weeks across six training centres.

For three days in each centre, the participants were exposed to the specialist literacy teaching practices called ‘Jolly Phonics’.

With the training, teachers gain the expertise to teach early child classes and Primary one, two and three pupils in public schools the rudiments of literacy.

Mr Patrick Uzu, Nigeria Country Director, ULS, said Jolly Phonics is a fun and interactive teaching tool that uses the synthetic phonics literacy teaching methodology.

Synthetic phonics is mandated or recommended by governments around the world because of the way that it quickly provides children with the skills needed to read and write.

ULS CEO, Mr Gary Foxcroft said the initiative, which is in its fifth year in Plateau State, had grown.

“The Plateau State Jolly Phonics is a fantastic opportunity for all children in Plateau State to benefit from the opportunity to learn to read and write. The project will, therefore, help increase equity and equal opportunities for all children in Plateau State.”

Foxcroft also praised the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) for its continued support for the adoption of Jolly Phonics in government schools across Nigeria.

By Sampson Unamka

Six pupils’ entries for the fifth  Blooming Minds Young Writers Award (BMYWA) have earned them recognition as budding creative writers.

The writers were honoured recently at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos, with cash and gift prizes.

The winners in the primary and secondary school categories were: Mariam Shiyanbade (winner, secondary); Adaobi Okonkwo (first runner up); and Nofisat Awwal (second runner up). For the primary category, Michael Imogu was the winner followed by Chimelugo Okoye (first runner up), and Emmanuel Edmund (second runner up).

Founder of BMYWA, Mrs. Thelma Ofosu Asamoah said the yearly competition was aimed at raising young leaders aged between six and 15.

“So, we get them to produce an essay that is African themed. The essence is for them to look within their communities, observe their everyday activity and be able to create a story from what they see.  In doing that we are trying to drive their analytical skills, aiming to drive research and development. Because for a child to see something happening and be able to create a story from that one event, one they are researching, they are being analytical, they are really thinking about what it is that they are writing so those are all the skills they are building while they are at this competition”.

Mrs. Asamoah added that the analytical and research skills the children gain from participating in the competition was a way of preparing them for leadership.

“Basically, we are after raising young leaders. One of the biggest problems we have in Africa – because we do not only do this in Nigeria but in Ghana as well -is leaders.There are certain skills that a leader should have.  One, a leader should have analytical skills; they should be able to sit observe and be able to identify what is going on through observation and also be able to provide a solution to that problem.  And these are some of the skills that they build while they are at what they are doing in this creative writing.  So this is the channel that we are using to build this skills in this children so when they become mature and young adults, aspiring future leaders they will have those skills,”she said.

Renowned authors, Abubakar Ibrahim and Ayesha Harruna Attah, judged the over 300 entries based on three criteria – originality, language and the given theme.

Speaking on her win, Mariam Shiyanbade of Ansar ud Deen College, Isolo, Lagos said it took her two days. to write the COVID-19 themed essay.

“I wrote about how COVID -19 affected my community in different ways. I am very happy winning.  It has given me more courage”, said Shiyanbade.

By Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

An ex-bank manager and business owner, Tito Obaigbo, has introduced an initiative to promote reading culture among women.

The initiative, named Smart Book Club (SBC), which boasts of over 40 members, Obaigbo said was informed by her observation a dwindling reading culture in the society and to afford women the opportunity to learn and associate.

Obaigbo, who is the club’s President, runs Oakhill Group of Companies, comprising of Oakhill Books, Oakhill Mart, Oakhill Schools, Oakhill Gardens, in addition to a non-governmental organisation (NGO) – the Charity and Development Initiative (CDI) – which she founded to empower women and youths through social and developmental initiatives, which she said, has empowered well over 100 women and youths.

She said women should continue to aspire to get more knowledge by reading, noting that “knowledge is power, reading broadens your horizon. It gives you a bigger, clearer and broader perspective to life. The secrets of making good success in life, businesses, marriage, finance, governance, etc are all embedded in books,”

She also spoke of plans by the all-women club, which was founded on the 1st of April 2018 to hold its anniversary this year in the form of a two-day event, which is scheduled for the Rooftop, Turaka Restaurant Ebony Place, Victoria Island, Lagos, with the theme: “Changing our reading culture.”

“On the first day, May 28, 2021 beginning from 10am, we will be having our PSL, we call it Project School Library. So on that day, we will be visiting one of the public schools in Lagos and donating books to their Library.

“We will also be donating other items like sanitary pads, toilet soaps, detergents writing materials, hand sanitizers, face mask, wipes, among others.

“The second day, May 29, which is the D-day, will feature our anniversary dinner to just unwind and thank God for how far He has started with us and where He is taking us too.

“The vision for the club is huge. That’s story for another day. So we are going to be having guest appearance. That’s a big surprise for members.”