105 primary schools in Oyo to be renovated under World Bank programme

The World Bank Global Partnership for Education (GPE) has selected 105 primary schools in Oyo State for infrastructure renovation as part of the All Additional Financing-Transforming Education System at States (BESDA AF-TEES) programme.

The World Bank Global Partnership for Education (GPE) selected Oyo, Adamawa, and Katsina states to receive a $123.8 million support grant to improve basic education.

Oyo State would get around N4 billion from the support grant to renovate three classrooms, acquire new infrastructure, establish male and female restrooms, sink boreholes and install solar power in each of the selected schools.

The selected schools, according to Oyo deputy governor Mr. Bayo Lawal, who presented symbolic cheques to benefiting institutions at the State Secretariat in Ibadan on Friday, are divided across the state’s three senatorial districts.

Lawal specifically assigned the School-Based Management Committee of schools with monitoring to ensure that the intervention is carried out to the letter.

Also speaking, Professor Salihu Adelabu, Commissioner for Education, Science, and Technology, stated that the state government analysed the needs of the state’s numerous primary schools before selecting the 105 schools that require immediate help.

Some of the schools that received symbolic checks are Oluyole Local Government Council Primary School in Oba Ado, St. Luke’s Primary School in Akintunde, and Islamic Mission School in Sango, Eruwa.

Giving more details on the intervention, Special Adviser to the Oyo State Governor on Education Intervention, Mr Suraj Tiamiyu, said the communities of the benefiting schools, engineers, and architects will monitor to ensure the project is delivered to specifications.

Tiamiyu said the project is to be completed within two weeks and will be simultaneously done in all the selected schools.

Tiamiyu said, “We are lucky to be part of three states in the BESDA AF project. In this project, we have opportunity to renovate 105 schools in Oyo State.

“Also, we will have the opportunity to have new furniture in the classrooms. We will renovate three classrooms in the selected schools. The schools will have the opportunity to have two toilets for male and female students.

There will also have boreholes and solar for all the schools.

“About N4 billion is to be expended to take care of furniture, boreholes, classrooms, and toilets. The COREN will supervise the schools, and an architect will monitor. The project is to be completed in six weeks.

“This is a BESDA project about rural areas in Oyo State. This is for primary schools. This is a community project.

“There is the SBMC, School-Based Management Committee. They will monitor the job to get it delivered within six weeks. We’ll get someone to monitor them.“