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Minister expresses concern over low enrollment of Northern students in FGCs
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Minister of education Professor Tahir Mamman has expressed concern over low enrollment of Northern Students into Federal Government Colleges.
KANO FOCUS reports that Prof. Mamman raised the alarm on Tuesday, during advocacy and sensitization visit to Kano State Ministry of Education aimed at boosting enrollment for the National Common Entrance Examination( NCEE) and Gifted Examination in to Federal Government Colleges.
Professor Mamman noted although Federal Government Colleges were established to provide secondary school education of high standard, most of the Northern States were left behind in term of filling their quota.
The Minster represented by the Deputy Director and Head Junior Secondary Education Mrs. Edith Osanyinpejun revealed that statistics made available to the Ministry by the National Examination Council (NECO) indicated that most states in the Northern part of the country recorded low enrollment in the National Common Entrance Examination and Gifted Examination.
“Kano was the first among Northern States to introduce such sensitization campaign on students enrollment in to Federal Unity Colleges during which the state was having higher percentage among it’s counterpart but as of some years back, the enrollment had changed,” the minister said.
According to the Minister, last year, record shows that enrollment of students in to Federal Unity Colleges in Kano was just 574 candidates compared to 5000 candidates enrolled when this campaign was intensified in the state.
He explained that the essence of the advocacy visit was therefore to solicit for the unwavering support and commitment of all stakeholders, parents and guardians in boosting enrollment for the 2024 National Common Entrance Examination to ensure full utilization of the State quoter in to the Federal Unity Colleges.
” It is on this premise that the Federal Ministry of Education decided to bring stakeholders, parents and guardians together as part of its mandate to sensitize the community on the importance of quality of education in the lives of our children, especially when the Entrance Examination for admission into the Federal Unity Colleges is coming up in April for the National Common Entrance Examination and May for the Gifted Examination.
” It is our desire that the state will put in place all the necessary machinery to assist those in the rural areas and the less privileged in the society, who desire a secondary education that is affordable and of remarkable standard,” the Minister urged.
Speaking, the Zonal Director North West National Examination Council Dr. Charles E. Udoh commended the present administration of Abba Kabiru Yusuf for the support and cooperation it has been giving to the National Body since inception.
He maintained that NECO had remained the dear host to the state and would continue to provide the best services needed to improve quality of education in the state.
Receiving the delegate in his office, the state Commissioner of Education Alhaji Umar Haruna Doguwa said Kano State Government would continue to be more Committed to it’s policies on educational development.
He explained that the United Nations benchmark on education remains 25% but with commitment of the present administration on education, the government sets aside 29.97% of its budget for education.
Umar Doguwa announced that even recently, the state had made all arrangements to register it’s students for the Federal Government Colleges, stressing that….” it is now an opportunity for us to start fresh through the most proper way and ensure that our students sit for next coming National Common Entrance Examination
“Kano being the most populated state, we are looking for more opportunity where our children can go and learn and this why we need assurance and cooperation especially from NECO ” said Doguwa.
He further urged the delegation to come up with moderlities targeted towards improving students enrollment in the National Common Entrance Examination and Gifted Examination.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano State Government says it has executed 1,508 development projects worth more than N928 billion across the state’s 44 local government areas since Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf assumed office, with about 80 per cent of constituency projects awarded between 2023 and 2025 already completed.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Commissioner for Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation, Comrade Nura Iro Ma’aji Sumaila, disclosed this during an international press briefing on the administration’s infrastructure development programme.
According to Comrade Sumaila, the projects cover critical sectors including roads, urban renewal, education, healthcare, security and other social infrastructure.
He said 799 of the projects have been completed, while 709 are at various stages of execution. He added that the state is also implementing 619 constituency projects through members of the Kano State House of Assembly.
The commissioner noted that about 80 per cent of the constituency projects have been completed. However, he said some projects remain unfinished because of rising construction costs caused by inflation.
He said the government has submitted a request to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf for an upward review of contract sums to enable contractors complete the affected projects.
Breakdown of projects
Comrade Sumaila said the administration spent over N169 billion on urban renewal projects, including road rehabilitation, drainage construction and other metropolitan infrastructure.
He said another N118 billion was committed to constructing five-kilometre roads in 38 local government areas to improve connectivity across the state.
According to him, the government also awarded contracts worth over N6.8 billion for the construction of Kano State Neighbourhood Watch security divisions in 36 local government areas.
He added that rural infrastructure projects covering education, healthcare and other social interventions across the 44 local government areas account for contracts valued at more than N397 billion, while other ongoing projects have a combined value of about N255 billion.
Commitment to transparency
The commissioner said the Ministry of Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation would continue to ensure compliance with due process and technical standards in the execution of government projects.
He said the ministry’s mandate includes monitoring projects to ensure value for money and prudent utilisation of public resources.
According to him, the administration’s investments in infrastructure are intended to improve mobility, strengthen security, expand access to education and healthcare, improve water supply and stimulate economic growth across the state.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as the highest-ranked sub-national government in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for education spending, according to the latest Sub-National Education Spending Index developed by the University of Paris.
KANO FOCUS reports that the ranking places Kano State first among 209 first-level sub-national governments across 15 ECOWAS member countries, underscoring the state’s growing reputation for prioritising investment in education.
According to the published index, Kano topped the rankings with an overall S-WAESI score of 87.21, outperforming other leading regions, including Dakar and Saint-Louis in Senegal. Lagos State was the second Nigerian state on the list, ranking 16th overall.
The assessment evaluated states and regions using the S-WAESI (Sub-National Weighted Aggregate Education Spending Index) methodology, which measures government commitment to education through indicators such as actual education expenditure, spending per student, budget execution, education priority, transparency and evidence-based reporting.
The methodology assigns 35 points to actual education spending, 25 points to spending per student, 20 points to budget execution, 10 points to education priority and 10 points to transparency.
The report indicated that Kano excelled largely due to its strong actual education spending and budget execution, making it the best-performing sub-national government in the region.
The ranking covered states, regions, districts and municipalities across Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Togo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde.
Kano State Accountability Forum on Education (K-SAFE) said the recognition reflects Kano State Government’s sustained investment in expanding access to education, improving school infrastructure and strengthening educational planning and budget implementation.
KANO FOCUS reports that the achievement is expected to further boost the state’s profile as a leader in education reform within West Africa and provide additional momentum for ongoing efforts to improve learning outcomes across the state.
The latest ranking comes amid renewed attention on education financing across ECOWAS, with experts increasingly emphasising transparent budgeting, efficient resource utilisation and sustained public investment as critical drivers of quality education.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the World Bank-supported HOPE Governance Programme after qualifying for a total of $3.5 million in performance-based incentives for implementing key governance, education and healthcare reforms.
KANO FOCUS reports that the World Bank, through the HOPE Governance Programme domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, approved $27 million in incentives for states that successfully met the Year Zero Disbursement-Linked Results (DLRs).
The National Coordinator of the HOPE Governance Programme, Assad Hassan, announced the incentives on Tuesday in Abuja during a retreat attended by commissioners, permanent secretaries and directors of budget and planning from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
A statement issued by the programme’s Communications Officer, Joe Mutah, said the incentives were based on the recommendations of the Interim Independent Verification Agent, which assessed states’ performance against agreed reform indicators.
Kano ranked among the highest-performing states, qualifying for incentives under three separate reform indicators.
The state will receive $1.5 million under Disbursement-Linked Result (DLR) 2.1 for adopting comprehensive guidelines for the preparation and submission of consolidated work plans for the state basic education budget.
It also qualified for another $1.5 million under DLR 2.2, which recognises states that adopted comprehensive guidelines for consolidated work plans for state primary healthcare budgets.
In addition, Kano secured $500,000 under DLR 2.3 for adopting harmonised budget guidelines and a unified chart of accounts for local governments.
Altogether, the state is expected to receive $3.5 million, making it one of the top-performing states under the programme.
Only five states—Bayelsa, Borno, Kano, Kebbi and Yobe—qualified for both the education and healthcare planning incentives, earning $3 million each from the two indicators alone.
Kano further distinguished itself by qualifying under the local government budgeting reform indicator, increasing its total allocation to $3.5 million.
The state also featured among 15 states that met the requirements under DLR 4.1, which rewards states for publishing their 2025 Citizens Budget for basic education and primary healthcare by February 28, 2025. Each qualifying state under this indicator will receive $500,000.
Other states that qualified under DLR 4.1 are Abia, Bayelsa, Borno, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Plateau and Yobe.
According to the programme, the performance-based incentives are designed to encourage states to strengthen governance systems, improve budget transparency and enhance planning in the education and primary healthcare sectors.
KANO FOCUS reports that the HOPE Governance Programme is a World Bank-supported initiative implemented through the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning to promote improved public financial management and better service delivery across Nigeria’s states.
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