Nation
RSUBEB Seeks Collaborations With Heads of Primary School Teachers
The Executive Chairman of the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board (RSUBEB), Dr Fyneface Ndubuisi Akah has said every child in the State has the right to free education in the State and called on the newly elected members of the Association of Primary School Head Teachers of Nigeria (AOPSHON), Rivers State wing to be focus and collaborate with the Board in there plans and also drive there colleagues to be focused in realising the vision of the board towards the development of Basic Education in the State.
Akah averred that the board looks up forward when the communities in the state will see themselves as partners with the State government and protect every government school infrastructure domiciled in their areas and protect them ,adding that the school base management committee (SMBC) was inaugurated to enable the communities owned up the schools in their areas.
According to him , before now, he taught the group was just a union body that only think on concentrating on working for the welfare of its members with regards to there entitlement and advised them to strive to key in to various opportunities that will attract training opportunities for its teeming members.
He made the call on Friday during a courtesy visit on him by the newly elected exco members of AOPSHON at the corporate headquarters of the Board in Port Harcourt, adding that he is looking for more groups like AOPSHON that will also help the administration to addressed the challenging of indiscipline among the teaching staffs across the Basic education schools in the State.
” Teachers is a critical organisation of personal
Globaling school remain the focus of basic education.
As a teacher you are to interact with the children day to day, so we need serious minder teachers in the universal education”
” So I will urge you that as you drive the issues about your members welfare at work place you should also consider and monitor the effectiveness of our colleagues in job delivery
” As a teachers you are to build the children and have eyes on them and if any of your colleagues fails to do so, bring them out and furnish us with their names that the board can visit such individuals and I think that way you have see yourself as working in positive part of collaboration with the board” he stated.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the chairman of AOPSHON State wing, Comr Otuji Godwill Ibabo thanks the RSUBEB Chairman for receiving them in his office and added that they were in office to familiarize with the board and to seek the chairmen’s fatherly advice blessings and promised to strengthening the existing collaboration with the board and the group for better results .
“We are here to seek for fatherly advise and collaboration because our predecessors told that there were robust relationship between the board and the association” he stated.
Akujobi Amadi/Francis Edokoor
Nation
HYPREP Marks 15 Years Of UNEP Report, Highlights Major Cleanup Milestones
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) has commemorated the 15th anniversary of the release of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Environmental Assessment Report on Ogoniland, reaffirming its commitment to restoring the environment and improving the livelihoods of affected communities.
In a statement signed by the Project Coordinator, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, to commemorate the anniversary, HYPREP described the anniversary as a significant milestone in Nigeria’s environmental restoration efforts, noting that the project has made remarkable progress in implementing the recommendations of the landmark UNEP report released on August 4, 2011.
The UNEP report had revealed extensive oil pollution across Ogoniland, severe environmental degradation, and serious public health risks resulting from decades of petroleum operations. It also recommended an initial $1 billion fund to commence the cleanup of the affected communities.
According to HYPREP, the Federal Government formally launched the Ogoni clean-up in 2016, while the Project Coordination Office was established in 2017 to drive the implementation of UNEP’s recommendations.
Zabbey said the current administration has continued to prioritise the project under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
Providing an update on the cleanup, the Project Coordinator disclosed that 30 of the 65 contaminated sites identified by UNEP have been fully remediated, while work is ongoing at several medium- and high-risk locations. It also stated that more than 1.5 million mangrove seedlings have been planted as part of what it described as the world’s largest restoration of oil-degraded mangroves, with over 1,000 hectares of shoreline already rehabilitated.
Zabbey further revealed that 49 Ogoni communities have been connected to potable water schemes through multiple water projects and booster stations aimed at providing safe drinking water across the region.
In the health sector, he said the 100-bed Ogoni Specialist Hospital in Kpite and the 43-bed Cottage Hospital in Buan are nearing completion, adding that several existing health facilities have been upgraded with modern medical equipment, while five ambulances have been donated to improve emergency healthcare services. The Project Coordinator also disclosed that a three-year human health biomonitoring study is being conducted in collaboration with the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
On economic empowerment, Zabbey stated that the Project has created more than 8,000 direct jobs and trained thousands of Ogoni youths and women in various vocational and technical skills, including software development, cybersecurity, aviation, commercial diving, seafaring, mechatronics, and creative arts. The project also reported awarding scholarships to more than 1,000 students, providing grants to small businesses, and supporting persons living with special needs through skills acquisition programmes.
The statement further highlighted ongoing legacy projects, including the Ogoni Power Project and the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration, which it said is about 96 per cent complete. HYPREP also welcomed the recent designation of the Ogoni Wetland as a Ramsar Site of International Importance and pledged to continue promoting biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of the ecosystem.
Marking the anniversary, Zabbey said the progress achieved over the past 15 years demonstrates the collective commitment of government, development partners, stakeholders, and local communities to restoring Ogoniland. He called for renewed collaboration to sustain the cleanup effort, promote environmental sustainability, and support the long-term development of the region. 3
