UBEC Delivers 4,000 Classrooms in Kano, Backs Teacher Recruitment Drive

The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) says it has delivered nearly 4,000 classrooms across Kano State as part of efforts to improve access to quality basic education and support the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

The Executive Secretary of UBEC, Aisha Garba, disclosed this during a series of education engagements in Kano, where she joined the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, and Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf to inspect UBEC-supported projects and witness the presentation of appointment letters to newly recruited teachers.

Garba said the intervention was aimed at creating safer and more conducive learning environments, while expanding access to education for children across the state.

She explained that the day’s activities began with the inspection of classrooms constructed through UBEC interventions under the Renewed Hope Agenda, noting that the projects were already improving learning opportunities for thousands of pupils.

According to her, improving education goes beyond providing school buildings, stressing that qualified and motivated teachers remain central to achieving better learning outcomes.

She described the Kano State Government’s teacher recruitment exercise as one of the most significant investments in education in the country, observing that the administration had recruited more than 16,000 teachers, including the latest batch, to address shortages, particularly in underserved communities.

Garba noted that Nigeria, like many countries, continues to face a shortage of teachers, especially in rural areas, making sustained investment in the teaching workforce essential.

“The directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is clear. No child should be left behind. Every Nigerian child deserves access to quality education. Even where classrooms exist, without teachers, children cannot learn. That is why investments in teachers are investments in the future of our nation,” she said.

She described every appointment letter presented to the newly recruited teachers as “a symbol of renewed hope” for schools, communities and the thousands of children whose future depends on quality teaching.

The UBEC boss also pointed out that the recruitment came at a time when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates that more than 44 million teachers are needed globally to bridge existing shortages.

She said Kano’s sustained investment in recruiting teachers placed the state among governments taking practical steps to address one of the world’s biggest education challenges.

Garba commended Governor Yusuf for prioritising education and reaffirmed that collaboration between the Federal Government, UBEC and state governments remained critical to achieving inclusive, equitable and quality basic education for every Nigerian child.

She also praised the leadership of Alausa and Ahmad for driving reforms in the education sector, saying the pace of ongoing reforms reflected an unprecedented commitment to improving learning outcomes nationwide.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Kano State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Malam Yusuf Kabir, said the recruitment followed a transparent and merit-based process designed to ensure that only qualified and competent teachers were employed into the state’s basic and secondary schools.

Kabir explained that the exercise was strengthened by the Kano State Teacher Policy, which introduced aptitude tests and other assessment procedures for prospective teachers.

He stressed that recruitment alone would not deliver the desired results unless teachers were effectively deployed, supervised, mentored and continuously evaluated.

The SUBEB chairman assured that education authorities would post the newly recruited teachers to schools where they were most needed while maintaining strong monitoring mechanisms to improve teaching quality and learning outcomes.

He also called on communities, development partners, corporate organisations and traditional institutions to complement government’s investments, stressing that sustainable improvements in basic education require collective responsibility.

UBEC reaffirmed its commitment to working with state governments across the country to expand access to quality basic education through sustained investments in school infrastructure, teacher development and learner-centred interventions.