Education

Don Tasks FG On Funding Of Education

Published

3 years ago

June 27, 2022

A Professor of Economics, Perekunah Bright Eregha, has advised the Federal Government to invest adequately in education and make funding of the sector a priority.
Eregha, a senior lecturer at Pan-Atlantic University (PAU), Epe, made the call in a paper delivered at the 10th anniversary of Inspiring Nigeria’s Vanguard of Exceptionally Noble Talents (INVENT) in Lagos.
He pointed out that without education, the country goes nowhere.
He said: “A country cannot grow beyond its human resources, and if there is anywhere fund should be allocated the more, it should be in education.”
Eregha said more priority should be given to public education, with a specific focus on youths, noting that if government sufficiently funds the sector, every youth will be in school and society will be much better for it.
“Skills demand has changed. It is not about being medical doctors or working in oil companies. The world has moved from that to data science. Data sciences are the next crude oil of the world. We are talking about machine learning and artificial intelligence. Some of the data science companies are doing very well, while most of the oil companies are struggling and closing down. It tells Nigerians that the world has changed and in Nigeria currently, we have youth unemployment that is more than 50 per cent. Generally, unemployment in Nigeria is about 33.5 per cent.
“Therefore, people need to shift their focus to skills that are in high demand than the general things we used to do before. I am very happy some youths are tapping into data science opportunities. Just with their laptops, I mean those who are not into Internet fraud, companies in developed countries like the United States and the United Kingdom are employing them. Some youths don’t have university degrees but acquired the right skills and with it, they are making good dollars in less than two to three hours job,”he added.
Principal facilitator, Invent Youth Leadership Initiative, Mr. Elijah Olupona, noted that the event is to prepare youths and secondary school students for future challenges.
We started in 2012 and it has been 10 years of empowering and equipping the next generation of visionaries and transformative leaders for Nigeria. We needed to equip the next generation to know that leadership rest on their shoulders.
“So, we are not building career leaders, but we believe every vacuum of the society is a career and we need to fill it.
“The only people that can step up the game are our youths and that is why we are doing this. We can build homegrown individuals across sectors that would help fix manpower requirements in Nigeria,” he said.
Olupona noted that in the past years, over 5,000 students had participated in the leadership summit, while about 1.500 students have been trained on mentorship.
The Tide gathered that the summit started in 2012, was attended by secondary school students from Lagos State. The project is a mentorship programme, which focuses on knowledge transfer and knowledge sharing. The project is a two-phase initiative.

Education

2025 Book Reading: TotalEnergies Commits To Unlocking Potentials, Career Choices In Students

Published

3 days ago

October 13, 2025

The Tide

TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited says it is committed to unlocking reading potentials and passion in students to guaranteeing successes in their educational futures.

The Deputy Managing Director, Joint Venture Asset (JVA), TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited, Olivier Cassassoles, stated this while delivering his speech at the 2025 Book Reading & Open Day Event For Senior Secondary Schools In Rivers State, held at the TotalEnergies Event Centre, Trans-Amadi, PortHarcourt, at the Weekend, with the theme ‘Paragraphs, Pages, and Chapters: Unlocking the Secrets of Success through Reading’.

Cassassoles who noted that the present era is characterised with endless distractions said students need a deliberate push for self-discovery and growth in their educational pursuits adding that reading, for students, is more than preparation for exams; as it is a gateway to new worlds, cultures and ideas, with each book serving as a passport to empathy, critical thinking, and self-expression.

While noting that the event marked a celebration of curiosity, imagination, and the transformative power of books, Cassassoles insisted that there is no greater spark than the one lit by a good book, adding that by supporting education, the company nurtures future leaders, innovators, and change makers.

He said “Today, we unite under a theme that resonates deeply with every learner: “Paragraphs, Pages, and Chapters: Unlocking the Secrets of Success through Reading.” This is not merely a motto, but a journey we embark on together. Each paragraph contains wisdom, every page opens a new possibility, and every chapter marks a new beginning in our personal stories.

“At TotalEnergies, our commitment to energizing society goes far beyond fueling vehicles or lighting homes. For over 60 years, we have been passionate about lighting up minds and empowering future generations through education. We are honored to invest in education, knowing that by supporting today’s youth, we help shape a brighter tomorrow. Let’s turn the pages together and unlock the next chapter of greatness”.

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Education, Dr (Mrs) Azibaolanari Uzoma-Nwogu, stressed that the journey of life begins with reading, expressing confidence in the schools and students of the state in their commitment to making the state proud in both national and international competitions.

Represented by the State’s Deputy Director, Senior Secondary Schools, Gbaranwi Charles B, Uzoma-Nwogu thanked TotalEnergies for its contributions to the growth, development and success of education in the state and pledged the ministry’s partnership in instilling reading habit in the students thereby shaping their minds and molding them like clay in the hands of a skilled potter.

Presenting awards to the representatives of the winners of the ‘Schools Presentation on TotalEnergies’, the General Manager, Country Services, Adesua Adewole, commended the students for their resilience and commitment to studies urging them to remain relentless for greater future achievements.

In his Closing Remarks, the Deputy General Manager, External Communications, TotalEnergies, Nigeria, Dr. Charles Ebereonwu, who noted the continuous evolvement of the company even in guiding educational and career paths, wished the students the best in their career decisions.

The year’s event featured a Nigerian literary classic novel: ‘The Potter’s Wheel’ by renowned author, Vincent Chukwuemeka Ike; a novel that not only mirrors the journey of many students as they navigate challenges, learn responsibility, and discover their voices but serves as a beacon of character, discipline, and personal growth.

Participating schools were Community Secondary School, Okuru-Ama (winner), Model Secondary School, GRA (1st runner-up) and Immaculate Heart College, Borokiri (2nd runner-up).

Others were Pabod Model Secondary School, Old GRA, Enitona High School, Borokiri, SeaCrest Preparatory School, Redeemer’s International School, Government Comprehensive Secondary School, Borokiri and Community Secondary School, Abuloma.

By: Lady Godknows Ogbulu

Education

CSS Okuru-Ama Wins 2025 total/elf book reading competition

Published

3 days ago

October 13, 2025

The Tide

The Deputy Managing Director, Joint Venture Asset (JVA), TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited, Olivier Cassassoles, has stated that reading, for students, is more than preparation for exams; as it is a gateway to new worlds, cultures and ideas, emphasising that each book is a passport to empathy, critical thinking, and self-expression.

The TotalEnergies DMD revealed that the company’s longstanding dedication to Nigeria’s youth was evident in a broad range of educational initiatives including

Scholarship Programs, construction of educational structures and laboratories, donation of solar lamps to students, Empowering The Teacher (ETT) fellowship programs and institution of the Institute of Petroleum and Energy Studies (IPES) in the University of PortHarcourt.

These efforts, he said, are not isolated but are all part of TotalEnergies’ vision to ignite potential and foster a culture of lifelong learning

“To our students: May this event be a turning point. May The Potter’s Wheel and the opportunities we support inspire you to reach higher and dream bigger. To our educators and guests: Thank you for being the guiding hands- the potters molding the bright minds of tomorrow.

“At TotalEnergies, we are honored to invest in education, knowing that by supporting today’s youth, we help shape a brighter tomorrow. Let’s turn the pages together and unlock the next chapter of greatness”, he said.

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Education, Dr (Mrs) Azibaolanari Uzoma-Nwogu, noted that books inspire, educate and transform, saying “there’s no time you open a page of a book that you don’t get something”.

Uzoma-Nwogu, who was represented by the Deputy Director, Senior Secondary Schools, Rivers State, Gbaranwi Charles B, stressed that the journey of life begins with reading, expressing confidence in the schools and students of the state in their commitment to making the state proud in both national and international competitions.

The Permanent Secretary thanked TotalEnergies for the growth, development and success of education in the state and pledged the ministry’s partnership in instilling reading habit in the students thereby shaping their minds and molding them like clay in the hands of a skilled potter.

The year’s participating schools are Community Secondary School, Okuru-Ama (winner), Model Secondary School, GRA (1st runner-up) and Immaculate Heart College, Borokiri (2nd runner-up).

By: Lady Godknows Ogbulu

Education

NAS moves to end Out-of-School syndrome in Enugu

Published

3 days ago

October 13, 2025

The Tide

Chapters of the National Association of Seadogs (NAS) in Enugu and South Africa have called on the state government, philanthropists, and organizations in Nigeria to devise practical approaches on how to return school age children from the streets to the classrooms.

Alarmed by the growing population of school age children on our streets, the Cap’n of the Enugu chapter of NAS, Mr Oseloka Egbuchiem, said, “it is a time bomb and a sad commentary on our social responsibility.”

Addressing journalists in Enugu on Tuesday, Egbuchiem explained that NAS chose October 6 to galvanize national awareness and collective action on the crisis of out of school children (OOSC) in Nigeria, through its Street Child Project and Back to School Campaign.

According to him, “the truth is that NAS can’t do it alone. The governments at different levels, and philanthropists should participate in this because it is a huge crisis.”

He noted further that, “we in Enugu collaborated with the chapter in South Africa on this campaign to mark the one-day national awareness and advocacy.

“On Monday, we distributed educational kits to at least 1,000 children in the state in five primary schools in Enugu metropolis and suburb.

“The beneficiary schools are Ibagwa Community Primary, Nike, Enugu, Francisca Children Academy, Ugbene 2, Enugu, Transekulu Primary School 1, Enugu, Transekulu Primary School 2, Enugu, Aguowa Primary School 1, Enugu.

“We continued the sensitization campaign today on radio where a panel of discussants threw more light on the OOSC crisis and to capture attention of the public and the government.”

According to Egbuchiem, NAS aims at empowering communities to sustain local education initiatives aimed at reducing OOSC in their areas.

He noted that the crisis is as real as the numbers from the UNICEF 2025 and UNESCO report that shows that 10.2–18.3 million children are out of school globally and that one in every child that is out of school in the world is a Nigerian.

“That unflattering report is a summary of perhaps what the future is for us and our children,” he said.

Egbuchiem noted that NAS believes that, “the scale of this crisis undermines Nigeria’s ability to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, especially SDG 4 (Quality Education), which sets out the ambition of ensuring inclusive and equitable education for all.

Meanwhile, among the social reasons that have kept millions of children in Nigeria out of school are poverty, insecurity, gender inequality, child labour, early marriage, poor infrastructure, and social exclusion.