Devt agencies, Italian government hail Obaseki’s reforms in Edo

The World Bank, the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), among others, have hailed Governor Godwin Obaseki for his administration’s reforms and programmes that have continued to improve livelihoods in Edo.

The Director, Global Education, World Bank, Jamie Saadevadra; Chief Education Officer (Nigeria) UNICEF, Saadhna Panday and the Chief of Mission, IOM, Laurent De Boeck, while speaking in Benin City during a dinner organised by the state government, hailed Obaseki’s impressive and pragmatic approach to governance and for implementing nuanced reforms and programmes to deliver on the government’s development objectives and achieve progress across all sectors of the state’s economy.

Others who also validated the governor’s development programmes are the representative of the Italian government and Italian Ambassador to Nigeria, Stefano De Leo; Senior Programme Officer at Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Clio Dintihac, and the Regional Vice President (Africa), Udacity, Emman Nour Ahmed Raslan, among others.

The World Bank representative, who described Edo as an accelerator state, said Edo under the leadership of Governor Obaseki is among the only 10 sub-nationals in the world with the political will to transform education and tackle learning poverty.

Jamie noted: “Across the world, we’re faced with a huge challenge; we face what I describe as a silent crisis. One that we don’t see any one dying each day but we see so many children across the world, even if they go to school, are not learning or getting the skills they require to succeed in life. That’s a challenge we have everywhere, including in Nigeria and Edo.

“In order to confront the challenge, what we need is not just good technical decisions and designs, but political commitment and will and that is the part that’s most difficult to see in many countries. We see the problems and the technical solutions but don’t see the political will to take the hard decisions that are needed in order to reform education. That’s one of the reasons why we call Edo State, under the leadership of Governor Godwin Obaseki, an accelerator state, together with other ten countries in the world.”

He added, “About four years ago, the governor made a bold statement that we need not just make sure that the teachers are in schools but that the teachers have the right engagement and interaction with students because that’s how we see the magic of learning, ensuring that all children in schools learn. The government has also made strides in the use of technology. They have efficiently deployed technology in order to leverage the work of the teachers. So, what we see in Edo is a glimpse of the future because the future is about that combination of technology and the human factor. Using technology to ensure that teachers, principals and other education players do their job as best as they can.”

While commending the governor for the successes recorded in the education and other sectors of the state, the UNICEF representative assured that the global education body “will continue to partner and ensure the technical support to provide all that’s needed to take the EdoBEST programme to the next level.”

On his part, the Italian Ambassador to Nigeria hailed the state government for the launch of the second phase of the Managing Migration through Development Project, assuring that the government will partner with the state on job creation, as well as investment and training opportunities, among others.

According to him, “The Italian Government invested about €2m in this project expected to last for two years because we strongly believe that the projects of economic development and growth by the government of Edo State led by His Excellency, Governor Godwin Obaseki need to be supported. These are innovative projects and programmes because they were drafted by the state government.”

In his response, Obaseki thanked the partners for their collaboration and support, reassuring that his administration will sustain efforts to ensure sustainable growth and development in the state.