Date: 2013-01-18

The Kwara State Government has decried the large number of illegal and substandard private schools operating in the state, as it again on Wednesday closed down four more schools in Asa Local Government Area of the state.
The schools were shut for their failure to comply with the set standards on the operation of schools.
They were Roland Science College, Eyenkorin, Government Kiddies Academy Nursery and Primary School, Amayo, Covenant Kiddies Academy Secondary School, Amayo, AlFurqen Nursery and Primary School, Eyenkorin and Cisse Nursery and Primary School, Ogele.
The Director of Quality Assurance Bureau, Alhaji Abubakar Bello Mohammed in an interview with The Herald lamented the increasing activities of illegal schools in the state, lamenting operators’ non-compliance with standard.
“The Ministry of Education has guidelines in respect for the establishment of private schools in the state. The guidelines are to regulate the operation of these private schools.  Education is a very serious business.
“We have discovered that it is an all-comers’ business, and we are out to sanitize the system to correct the anomalies found.
“The guidelines are very clear; for you to be given permission to establish a school, you must have put certain things in place. One, there is need for you to have developed some basic infrastructural facilities, talking about classroom, laboratory for science, ICT, home economics centre as the case may be, workshop in the case of technical education.
“All these are the foundations which must be met before the proprietor is given an approval to run a school.  You must also have professional qualification as teacher to handle various subjects in your school.
“We also expect a school to have enough space for recreational activities such as sport.  There should be sanitary facilities for the pupils as well.  And the overall environment must be conducive for learning.
“We will not expect someone to go and establish a school near a market place where noise will be distracting the pupils’ attention or near a river which could be dangerous for the pupils.
“Thereafter, having met all these conditions, a school must be duly registered with the Ministry of Education. So the schools we are closing now are those that are deficient in the area of infrastructural facilities or those that have not followed due process of registration with the ministry.
“We have two categories of them  illegal and substandard schools.  Substandard schools are those deficient in the area of infrastructure and illegal schools are those that have not been duly registered,” he explained.
He however vowed that the exercise will continue until the ministry is able to sanitize the system towards achieving the set goals for education in Kwara State.
Also speaking with The Herald, the Deputy Director of Quality Assurance Bureau of the ministry, Mrs. Omolara Adegbite, also lamented the activities of the illegal schools in the state, describing her experience as shocking.
She said: “There are so many illegal and substandard schools operating in the state and it is amazing that almost all these schools have very high population of pupils with un-conducive learning environment.”