Embrace BESDA Programme, UBE Chairman Urges Parents In Rivers

n a bid to ensure quality and accessible education for children between the ages of six and eleven, who dropped out of school as a result of their parents’ inability to pay their fees, the executive chairman of the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr. Fyneface Ndubuisi Akah has encouraged parents to enrol their children into the ongoing BESDA programme.
The chairman expressed disappointment in some parents, who have shown no interest in the programme. He encouraged them to utilize the opportunity, by enrolling their children into the Better Education Service Delivery for All, BESDA programme ongoing in the state.
Akah stated this penultimate Thursday when his team visited the Eleme Local government area of Rivers State to inspect some BESDA centres in the area. Just last week, the chairman had visited some centres including the Ighunedhe 1 and 2, popularly known as the Abuja centres in Ahoada-East Local Government Area, Igbu-Gbor, Ojims centres at Ihugbogo village.
Addressing parents during the visit, the chairman who was represented by the director, legal and head of the public relations unit of the board, Mr Karibi George said, “it is very essential, highly important for parents to make good use of this opportunity by sending their children who are out of school to BESDA centres nearest to them.”
George who enlightened all present on the importance of the programme said, “BESDA is an acronym for Best Service Delivery For All, a programme of the World Bank in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education and State Ministry of Education across the 36 states of the Federation.
“We want to condemn in strong terms the attitude of some parents in Eleme, who threatened to withdraw their children from the BESDA centres if government does not give them money to share.
“We wish to appeal, that for the sake of these children, these future leaders, we are appealing to parents to appreciate this gesture by sending their children to acquire the necessary knowledge to secure a safe future so that their parents and nation at large will not suffer the mayhem that denying these children their right to education might cause tomorrow.”
He also urged them to support government to tackle the out of school problem militating against the nation, adding that BESDA centres are free and solely for children who are out of school and does not share money. He urged the facilitators and vendors to ensure that the children are given the needed attention.
He also noted that the programme is expected to last for nine months after which the children will enter the UBE regular school and by then they would have learnt how to read and write. Some of the centres visited during the tour were Olele and Alu Ngwa centres in Eleme.