Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has approved the appointment of Dr Terna Francis as the pioneer Executive Secretary of the newly established Benue Education Quality Assurance and Examinations Board.

The appointment is effective immediately, according to a statement issued on Tuesday by Tersoo Kula, Governor’s Chief Press Secretary.

The new board was created following the recent passage of a law by the Benue State House of Assembly that merged the former Bureau for Education Quality Assurance and the now-defunct Benue State Examinations Board.

The merger, the statement said, is intended to strengthen the education sector and ensure that the Benue child receives holistic, high-quality, and competitive education that prepares them to excel anywhere in the world.

Governor Alia congratulated Dr Francis on his appointment and urged him to apply his experience, integrity, and innovation in repositioning the state’s education assessment and quality assurance systems.

He also charged the new Executive Secretary to uphold excellence, transparency, and accountability in the discharge of his duties, noting that education remains a top priority for his administration.

The governor also noted that the board must serve as a catalyst for continuous improvement, discipline, and quality standards across all levels of learning in the state.

In a separate development, Alia also approved the appointment of Prof. Emmanuel Kenen as Acting Vice Chancellor of Reverend Father Moses Orshio Adasu University in Makurdi.

“The governor, who is the Visitor to the state-owned institution, made the appointment following the recommendation of the Governing Council of the university, which nominated Prof. Kenen to serve in an acting capacity for a period of not more than six (6) months, in accordance with the provisions of the law establishing the University as contained in Gazette No. 3, Vol. 45, Part III, 16 (11 & 12),” the statement read.

Alia also charged the new acting VC with upholding the university’s core values of excellence, discipline, innovation, and moral rectitude.

He noted that the university must continue to be a centre of knowledge and character formation, producing graduates who will contribute meaningfully to the development of Benue State and Nigeria at large.

The governor also stated his administration’s commitment to repositioning tertiary education in the state for global competitiveness through enhanced infrastructure, staff welfare, research development, and high academic standards.

MOAUM, formerly known as Benue State University, was established in 1991 and began operations in the 1992/93 academic year with four faculties: Arts, Education, Science, and Social Sciences.