Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has revealed that his Prosperity Government has spent over N20 billion to ensure that programmes in the state’s higher institutions get accredited, adding that his administration’s investment in the education sector has yielded positive results.
Governor Diri stated this on Wednesday during the 171st State Executive Council meeting in Government House, Yenagoa, when he received the accreditation reports of various programmes from the heads of state-owned tertiary Institutions.
The Bayelsa governor said the government’s huge investment in the sector was informed by his conviction that education was the bedrock of development, as no society can develop beyond its level of education.
He noted that accreditation of the programmes was a testament to the fact that the administration was committed to uplifting the sector and promised to keep investing in education.
A statement by Daniel Alabrah, Chief Press Secretary to the governor, recalled that there were issues of non-accreditation of programmes in tertiary institutions in the state when he assumed office and that since 2020, the government had invested over N20 billion in its drive to correct the anomaly.
The state’s helmsman acknowledged that the Niger Delta University (NDU) alone had contributed significantly to the human capital development of the state, stressing that most graduates in the civil service today were products of the institution.
He stressed the primacy of education among the young generation and urged the youths to shun cultism and all forms of vices, saying they had no reward.
The statement reads in part: “We have spent over N20 billion in ensuring that programmes in our institutions get accredited. We are doing this not only for ourselves but for generations yet unborn.
“We are happy with the reports, which show that our investment of billions in the sector was not in vain. We met issues of accreditation when we came on board, but we battled all of that.
“The accreditation reports attest to the fact that we are working together so that our investments will not fail us. We have always said the priority of our administration was education, and we will continue to invest in it as it is the pivot of societal development. No society can develop beyond its level of education.”
Presenting the accreditation report of the institutions, the Commissioner for Education, Dr. Gentle Emelah, said that since 2022, the NDU has had a total of 116 programmes accredited, while the Isaac Jasper Boro College of Education, which has been affiliated to NDU, has had 10 of its programmes also accredited.
Emelah said seven programmes were accredited at the Bayelsa Medical University, four of which were full while three got interim accreditation.
Also, he said the Bayelsa State Polytechnic, which got 16 of its programmes accredited, now offers more Higher National Diploma programmes than National Diploma programmes.
