Zamfara: Coalition laments release of only N3bn to education

From Ibrahim Sidi Muh’d, Gusau

An active Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) operating as ‘’Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All (CSACEFA) has lamented the release of only 3 billion naira against the 13 billion naira budgeted for education sector in Zamfara State in the year 2018.
This was revealed by the Zamfara State Coordinator of CSACEFA, Shehu Adamu Dinawa who was represented by the state Secretary, Abdullahi Lawal Bungudu during the Advocacy brief presentation to the House Committee on Education Zamfara State House of Assembly last Wednesday.
Dinawa who, said the unfortunate situation might not be unconnected and directly related to successive years of poor fiscal allocation and implementation of budgetary process which positioned the state at a very low level where the percentage of out of school children stands at 76.2%.
“Reliable data had shown that the literacy rate in the state remains at a very low level where the percentage of out of school children stands at 76.2%, and that in the year 2018, the budgetary allocation to education sector was N13.9bn naira, but ‘’only a sum of N3.9bn was release for both recurrent and capital expenditure, representing only 28.37% of the total allocation.
The Coordinator further lamented that, the 2019 budget is characterised with same problem as according to him, out of the focal allocation of N16.7bn for educational sector for both recurrent and capital expenditure, reflecting an increase of about 29% compared to last year, ‘’The release of the allocation still remains a formidable challenge’’ he cried.
Responding, the Chairman House Committee on Education, honourable Yusuf Alasan Kanoma, has expressed worried by the alarming nasty development in the educational sector in the state, assuring that, his committee will ensure that, the issue is tabled-forwarded to the state assembly for through deliberation and prompt intervention.
He observes that as Zamfara State is in desperate need of more qualified indigenous manpower to effectively handle the government affairs, it is necessary for the government to reverse the situation so that the state could satisfactorily compete among its sister states in the country.