Ondo Governor Receives National Award for Education

Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa has received the Nigerian government’s Most Outstanding Governor Award in Contribution to Education, especially school enrollment in rural communities.

The award was part of presentations to individuals and schools by the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Alausa in commemoration of the World Teachers Day held in Abuja, Nigeria.

The Governor, who said he was a former classroom teacher dedicated the award to teachers across Ondo State, describing their daily sacrifices as foundational to the development of the state.

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“I dedicate this award to Men and Women who enter the class everyday carrying the hope of families,” he stated.

The Governor recounted that the state, under his administration has improved school enrollment, especially in the rural areas using free shuttle motor transportation, as well as engine boats in the riverine areas.

“The state’s free transport intervention is helping to return children to school, particularly in riverine communities. We buy, maintain and fuel the transport facilities consistently.

“The initiative has removed excuses for parents and is already reducing the number of out-of-school children in the state,” he noted.

The Governor said apart from free transportation, the state government pays the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), fees for students in public schools.

He said the state in 2025 alone recruited over 2,000 teachers, adding that the administration has continuously trained serving teachers, improve pedagogy and renovated schools with fittings and furniture.

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According to him, the state has embraced digital education by acquiring the required technologies and trained teachers in that regard.

“We have acquired AI powered learning tools, thousands of tablets and Laptops for learners and teachers in the state,” he revealed.

He said the state has equally approved the establishment of a school of Nursing and a College of education to improve numbers and quality of health attendants and teachers in the state.

He said the state has consistently paid teachers’ salaries, gratuity and pension to retirees including inherited backlogs of up to 10 to 15 years.

“My message to serving teachers is that their service to the state is guaranteed even after retirement,” he said.

Aiyedatiwa expressed appreciation to the Federal Ministry of Education and other stakeholders for contributing to the success of the celebration.

He said education remained a long-term investment in the character, capacity and productive strength of the people of Ondo State, adding that the conviction was firmly embedded in his administration’s seven-pillar ‘OUR EASE’ development agenda.

Also at the event, Mrs. Mary Adebayo received a car prize as the Best Teacher of the Year, while Nasarawa State emerged first in the Teachers’ Day match-past.

Other outstanding teachers were also presented with various prizes in recognition of their contributions to the education sector.

Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa at the award presentation said the Federal Government has prioritised teachers’ welfare, respect and the environment in which they work since President Bola Tinubu assumed office on May 29, 2023.

He said government has rehabilitated and furnished hundreds of thousands of classrooms, provided millions of instructional materials to basic and post-basic schools and carried out extensive infrastructure upgrades in tertiary institutions.

The Minister noted that the country’s learning outcomes assessment, which had not been done in five years, has now been concluded and significant improvement is expected.

He disclosed that the number of Nigerian universities ranked among the top 1,000 globally has risen from 21 before the current administration to 29, with 21 of them being public universities.

He also cited the expansion of access through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the return of technical and vocational education to the curriculum, investments in STEM, medical schools, laboratories and research centres, and the provision of about N600bn for student hostels in federal institutions.

According to him, over one million out-of-school children have been brought back to school in the last two years, while the education data system now captures almost 40 million children.