Date: 2018-11-02

The Kwara State Government has commended the Federal Government for its adoption of Every Child Counts, an education model introduced 10 years ago by the administration of former Governor Abubakar Bukola Saraki and scaled up by the current administration of Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo had last Tuesday announced that the Federal Government's new education policy will be named 'Every Child Counts'.

The state government, in a statement by Governor Ahmed's Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communication, Dr Muyideen Akorede, also urged other states to emulate the federal government and adopt other successful reforms introduced by the state government.

The statement reads "The Kwara State Government commends the Federal Government for its adoption of the 'Every Child Counts' Education model.

Introduced in Kwara State ten years ago by the Kwara State Government under the administration of His Excellency, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, currently the Senate President, to national and global acclaim, 'Every Child Counts' was driven by the state government’s recognition of quality education as the bedrock of development and a tested pathway out of poverty."

"To that end, 'Every Child Counts' expanded access to quality education through improved teacher education, repositioning of Colleges of Education to enhance teaching quality, an experiential rather than instructional teaching at basic education level as well as setting and enforcing quality standards in public and private schools.

"The successor administration of Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has since upscaled 'Every Child Counts' by abolishing tuition fees at Senior Secondary Schools, thus making pre-tertiary education free in the state, improving school infrastructure, prioritizing Science and Technology, and establishing the International Vocational Technical and Entrepreneurial College, IVTEC, Ajase Ipo.

"While commending the federal government for adopting our 'Every Child Counts’ model, we urge other states to follow suit by adopting other cutting-edge reforms by the Kwara State government such as state-wide health insurance, IGR reforms and the Kwara State infrastructure development fund(IFK) among others".