Education Development Plan By Ifedi Okwenna

In Anambra, education is our biggest industry. It is a tool for provision of knowledge and skills for the population. The new divide in the world is between those with the knowledge and those without. Since Ndi Anambra cannot afford to be without knowledge, my Education Plan shall be total and comprehensive. It will encompass restructuring of our formal, non-formal and informal learning education systems.

Our plan shall be as follows:

1. Anambra Model on Education:
   We shall design and develop an education system to be known as Anambra State Model on Education. This model shall integrate the National Curriculum on Education, with the globally acceptable Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) curricula. Through the hybridization, we shall ensure sustainable development in education, promotion of social equity and education inclusion of all segments of the State. It shall help in providing broad based technical knowledge and transversal skills for our youths; flexibility, creative thinking and continuing vocational training and re-skilling to our workforce.
   The Anambra Model on Education shall ensure that any graduate from the Anambra school system possesses the necessary entrepreneurial, innovative and knowledge-based skills for job creation, business development and idea incubation. Our education shall be ICT driven, providing manpower for our planned e-business. e-governance and digital transformation of the State.
2. Science, Technology. Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education and Artificial Intelligence
   As Governor, I shall create Innovation Centres that would champion Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education and Artificial Intelligence with the aim of supporting teachers and students in the state to involve themselves in programmes that deepen their knowledge of design, manufacturing, assemblage and training, to upscale their skills and capacity for global relevance. These facilities shall enable us to place high premium on technical and practical education and ensure that skill-based education returns to the centre stage of our education system.
3. Training and Retraining of our Teachers:
   This will be done using various innovative training and teaching models to be certified by the State Education system. Through this system, we shall ensure that our teachers continuously update their knowledge and skills in line with rapid changes in technological development and advancement.
4. Trader Education:
   We shall establish and advance the Trader Education in Anambra State and make it a part of our school system. This shall include
   a. Basic education up to school certificate level for children and young adults who were not privileged to receive them before they went into trade.
   b. Handsome Training in business, trading innovation, entrepreneurship development models etc. for those who want to innovate and advance their businesses.
   c. We shall innovate and ensure the mainstreaming of the Igbo Apprenticeship system (Certified by the UN as the best poverty alleviation Model) as part of our education system.
   d. The trader’s education for those that started without school certificate shall be in three parts: school certificate, Handsome Part 1 (Entrepreneurship education) and Part 2 (Business Development). The completion of these three parts shall be certified and graduates of that education model are qualified to receive certificates of training and proficiency, equivalent to a National Diploma in Anambra State. Anyone of them returning to higher school in the State goes straight to a HND programme which is equivalent to a first degree or gains direct entry to the university , with credit given for their certificates so that they graduate in a fewer number of years.
5. Smart Learning and Student Routing Online Solution
   We shall encourage Smart Learning, Teachers and Student routing online solution, e-Learning, where learning is made easy through use of electronic devices with learners’ comfort taking into consideration. To achieve this speedily, we are going to leverage on existing solutions like google classroom, google for pbskids.com etc which are free to the world. We will deploy them in the state for those who need them and also make Chromebook available to Ndi Anambra at home and abroad.
6. Promotion of Research and Development:
   We shall greatly encourage research and development of ideas and building of developmental models. Special research centres shall be established and funded, either within existing institutions or as stand-alone centres. Emphasis shall be on ensuring that our research is tailored to meeting the demands of our local environment.
7. Research Grants and Product Patent:

Government shall partner with the private sector, foreign institutions and organizations to set up research grants in varying fields and to obtain patent for scientific breakthroughs in our state. We shall go further to encourage the adaptation of those research for our development.

8. Scholarship and Bursary:
   We shall promote and coordinate the establishment and management of new and existing Government and private sector-owned scholarship schemes and bursary awards in the state to make it achieve the optimum potential of helping brilliant and indigent youths who truly need them.
9. Rebuilding Government Schools:
   My Government shall embark on the immediate and gradual renovation and development of our public schools to bring their infrastructure at par with or in better condition with those in Private schools. Dilapidated structures and classrooms shall be rebuilt. They will be equipped with modern toilets, e-libraries, standard laboratories etc.
10. Urban School Bus System:
    My government shall experiment with free School Bus System in the urban areas of Awka, Onitsha and Nnewi. The School Bus shall be available to pupils and students for free using their digital school identity card. This is to ease the suffering of our children going to and returning from school. This will be interlinked with the proposed Anambra Bus System (ABS) project.
11. Partnership with Churches and Voluntary Organizations:
    We shall continue to support and partner with churches and voluntary agencies in building infrastructure and in improving the standards of all their schools including those recently returned back to them by the Peter Obi administration.
12. Infrastructure and Academic Upgrading of Tertiary Schools;

a. Infrastructure Upgrading:
State owned tertiary institutions shall under my Government receive increased government support and funding. We shall continue to upgrade the infrastructure and academic standard at Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University in Uli and Igbariam, Anambra State Polytechnic Mgbakwu, Nwafor Orizu University of Education Nsugbe and Anambra State College of Health Technology, Obosi.
b. Accreditation of Academic Programmes: We shall ensure that all academic programmes not yet accredited in any of these schools are accredited and those needing reaccreditation and panel visitations meet the standards expected of them.
c. Introduction of new Courses: Under my Government, new courses shall be introduced in all the State-owned tertiary Institutions, especially in entrepreneurial development, innovation and knowledge-based skills development, business development and idea incubation, in line with the new Anambra Model on Education.

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It’s possible.

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