Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf has stated that his deputy, Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, ceases to be Commissioner for Higher Education.

In a statement by the governor’s spokesperson, Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, yesterday, the ministry is now collapsed as the Ministry of Education, with a specialised Directorate of Higher Education to oversee tertiary education activities.

The directorate would be headed by a Permanent Secretary and supported by the necessary personnel to ensure effective management of higher education institutions in the state.

“Under this restructuring, all agencies under the defunct Higher Education Ministry, such as the Scholarship Board, will return to the Ministry of Education, while state-owned universities and other Higher Education Institutes will also be supervised by the new Directorate under the merged ministry.

“The move is part of the state government’s ongoing State of Education sector reform, aimed at repositioning the sector, eliminating duplication of responsibilities, improving policy coordination across all levels of education and reducing the cost of governance,” Dawakin-Tofa added.

The governor asserted that the reform is designed to reduce the cost of governance while enhancing efficiency, accountability, and the overall quality of education administration in Kano State.

He reiterated that his administration remains fully committed to implementing far-reaching reforms that would revive the education sector and secure a brighter future for the younger generation.

Consequently, the Office of the Secretary to the State Government and the Office of the Head of Service had been directed to ensure immediate and seamless realignment of the affected ministries and their respective departments.

Before the restructuring, the defunct Ministry for Higher Education was the subject of resource misappropriation and financial impropriety, with the former Commissioner, Dr Yusuf Kofar-Mata, accused of fraud in the state foreign scholarship.