The Taraba State Government said it paid about N4billion for the 2025 National Examination Council (NECO), West African Examination Council (WAEC), Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), and National Business and Technical Examination Board (NAPTEB) for students in its public schools.
The payment was in continuation of the free and composory education policy introduced by Governor Agbu Kefas since assumption of office in 2023.
Commissioner for Education in the state, Dr. Augustina Yahaha disclosed this on Thursday while speaking with LEADERSHIP on the activities of the ministry and the efforts of the governor to make education free and composory for the children in the state.
Dr. Yahaha said payment of the four different examination bodies worth not less than N4billion, a situation she said has delayed the full supply of desks and other relevant learning materials to public schools in the state.
The Commissioner stated this in response to recent publications that the students from the state were sitting on the floor to write examinations.
“With free education, thousands of children return back to our public schools in Taraba State, the number of desks and other leaning materials were no longer enough, that was why last year, the governor ordered for construction of more desks to the schools in which we provided for more than 12,000 students in 2024.
“This year, we still wrote to him about shortages of the sitting materials, having gone round the schools, the governor again approved another set of 12,000 set of desks for the children, we also have other challenges in the education sector, such as final year examinations, they were also knocking at our doors, we have to prioritise one thing first before the other.
“Now that we are done 100% with all the final year examinations, we are going to take the provision of sitting materials seriously and in the next few weeks,’ the Commissioner assured.
Dr Yahaya further revealed that primary school certificate has been abolish by the National Council of Education since 2023, urging parents clamouring for the Primary School Leaving Certificate to desist from making case about as the certificate is no longer obtainable across the country.
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