FG Won’t Scrap COEs –Minister

The Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufai, has said that the Federal Government has no plans to scrap the colleges of education in Nigeria.

This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja,  yesterday, by Mr Peter Obidieg the deputy Director, Press, in the ministry.

It stated that the minister said this when the Forum of Chairmen of Governing Councils of Federal Colleges of Education led by Mrs Grace Ekon paid her a courtesy visit.

Rufai also said that the Federal Government did not have any plans to discard the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) as being peddled in some quarters.

She said that government only took a holistic review of the system with a view to strengthening the colleges.

According to her, the review would enable the colleges to produce the needed manpower that could deliver the required quality teaching at the basic education level.

The minister questioned the rationale behind scrapping the colleges when many states were grappling with the problem of shortage of teachers in their schools.

According to her, President Goodluck Jonathan is concerned about the need to produce quality and adequate teaching force at the basic education level.

Rufai said that some intervention strategies are in the pipeline to boost the activities of the colleges, as was being done for the universities and polytechnics

Earlier, Ekon had commended  Prof. Rufai for her efforts toward strengthening teachers’ education.

She pledged the forum’s loyalty and support to ensure that positive results were achieved in the process of moving the sector forward.