The Gombe State Ministry of Education is set to commence a 14-day school census to gather crucial data on public schools across the state, with a view to addressing educational problems.
Director of planning of the state ministry of education, Abdulmuminu Umar, who disclosed this during the opening ceremony of training for the census enumerators held at Teachers Resource Centre (TRC), Kwami, Gombe State, emphasised the importance of the census, stating that it would serve as a guide for effective planning and identifying number of out of school children and gaps in the education sector.
According to him, the ministry would deploy 360 enumerators to conduct the census, which would be monitored digitally using unique identification codes for each school.
He added that there are 669 public primary, junior and senior secondary schools in the state, noting that the census would be conducted in all schools, with pupils, students, teachers and infrastructure counted.
“This will enable the Ministry to plan effectively, project instructional materials and infrastructure needs, and ensure fair allocation and improve teacher-to-student ratios deployment”, he stated.
Also speaking, the executive chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Babaji Babadidi, represented by a full-time member of the board, Gambo Aliyu, observed that this year’s annual school census differs significantly from previous ones, due to the influx of people from across the country into Gombe State, which has overstretched school facilities.
He added that the funds committed to this year’s exercise have tripled compared to the previous year, adding that the aim was to obtain accurate data on the number of pupils and students.
“This year’s census will provide more comprehensive information than before. The exercise goes beyond a simple headcount; it will include data on enrolment, infrastructure, furniture, and teachers”, he explained.
The Guardian recently reported that Gombe State First Lady, Asma’u Inuwa Yahaya, on Monday, flagged off free registration of children in Gombe Local Government Area as part of efforts to reduce the number of out-of-school children in the state.
According to official records, Gombe has no fewer than 787,619 out-of-school children out of its four million population.
Concerned by the figure, the state government, through the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), in collaboration with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and UNICEF, launched an enrolment drive campaign aimed at cutting the number by 50 per cent before 2030. The initiative provides free registration and school materials to children across the 11 local government areas of the state.
Speaking at the flag-off in Gombe LGA, the First Lady urged parents to support the programme by enrolling their children in school, stressing that Governor Inuwa Yahaya remains committed to child welfare, including education, healthcare, and nutrition.
Executive Chairman of SUBEB, Babaji Babadidi, explained that the drive was designed to promote behavioural change, ensuring retention, completion, and transition of pupils into formal education.
