Stakeholders in basic education in Ebonyi have adopted a Community Engagement Framework (CEF) to guide activities and operations of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).
The stakeholders comprising officials of the SUBEB; Ministry of Education and members of the civil society organisation adopted the framework at the end of the two-day engagement summit in Abakaliki
The document was made available to our reporter on Monday in Abakaliki.
The framework was an outcome of the USAID/Palladium-sponsored Strengthening Civic Advocacy and Local Engagement (SCALE) Project in five states in Nigeria, including Ebonyi.
Under the framework, citizens’ inputs are to be given priority in the determination of work plans, implementations and other related activities of the SUBEB.
The framework was developed by the Accountability for Good Governance in Education (AGGE) Cluster, a Civil Society Organisations’ initiative, in collaboration with State Universal Basic Education Board.
The adoption of the framework followed a two-day validation meeting held in Abakaliki on Thursday and Friday organised by the AGGE in collaboration with SUBEB in Abakaliki.
Chief Hyacinth Ikpo, the Chairman of SUBEB who signed on behalf of the state government described the development as a significant milestone in the journey to achieve functional basic education in Ebonyi.
He said that the development has opened wider doors for consultations and incorporation of community stakeholders for more effective decision-making in the implementation of basic education programmes in the state.
He noted that the era of relying only on community leaders and Education Secretaries of Local Government Education Authorities for information on the educational needs of communities was over.
He added that the framework has prescribed the incorporation of larger key stakeholders such as people with disabilities, the clergy, Old Boys and Girls Associates; Parent/Teacher Associations and School Based Management Committees, among others.
He explained that the Board has also set up a community engagement desk with a designated desk officer to manage the demands of the framework.
He said: “The collaboration embodies excellent strategies for optimal performance in the delivery of compulsory basic education in Ebonyi.
“The validation and adoption have also become key conditionality in accessing the 50 per cent counterpart funding from the Federal Government through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) going forward.
“The Ebonyi UBEB hereby declares that the framework is clearly stated, and has therefore been adopted to be utilised as a working document.”
Mr Peter Ogah, representative of the youth hub Africa (YHA) who Spoke on the objectives of the framework, stated that it was aimed at applying strategic ways for involving the communities in the UBEB budget and work plan.
He said that it was to ensure that the allocation of SUBEB resources in Ebonyi is based on the identified priority educational needs of communities in the state.
Mr Oliver Aja, Executive Director of, the Development Integrity and Intervention Goal (DIG) Foundation, described the validation and adoption meeting as a historic event aimed at ushering further development in the education sector in the state.
Chima explained that the five-member AGGE cluster organisations have YouthHub Africa as its anchor while DIG Foundation is the Ebonyi coordinator and host of the validation meeting.
Summitnews reports the framework was developed by a consultant and modified during the meeting to meet the needs of the state before endorsement.
