President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, on Monday, pledged the 10th Senate’s continued commitment towards supporting President Bola Tinubu’s policies on student loan programmes and other initiatives aimed at addressing out-of-school children in the country.
Senator Akpabio gave the assurance in Abuja during the 8th NILDS -UNIBEN Postgraduate and NILDS 3rd Higher National Diploma Programmes Convocation Ceremony, noting that: “despite lingering challenges in the nation’s educational sector, data shows that Nigeria has recorded better performance in its Human Development Index in the UNDP 2024 report than it did in 2019.”
Also the Institute conferred Fellow awards on notable Nigerians, namely: former Head of State, General Abdulsalam Abubakar; President of the 8th Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki; Speaker of the 8th House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara; Minister of State for Labour, Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha and Professor Mike Obadan, an economist, educationist, and public service administrator, in recognition of numerous contributions to the growth of democratic institutions as well as consolidation of in Nigeria.
He said, “Supporting the educational sector through increased funding will therefore enable our country to record significant transformational changes. That is why the 10th Senate has continued to support policies such as the student loan programme and to take other initiatives towards addressing out-of-school children.
“These initiatives are very dear to the President and Commander in Chief, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, and thus require the support of all stakeholders. As the Chairman of the NILDS Governing Council, I will ensure that my team continues to support NILDS in fulfilling its role as the nation’s only statutory institute with a mandate for legislative and democratic engagements.”
Also speaking, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas applauded the giant stride made by NILDS management, expressed excitement that the NILDS postgraduate programme has grown from its humble beginning to a world-class programme that is admired by many within and outside the Country.”
He also commended Professor Abubakar Sulaiman, for this laudable initiative and encourage NILDS to sustain this award as an institution.
“On the flip side of our responsibilities as parliamentarians, we are concerned about the abandonment of numerous projects whose completion would have added to the much-desired dividend of democracy and consolidation of good governance in Nigeria.
“As members of the 10th National Assembly, therefore, we are committed to putting in place a legal framework that enables effective budget preparation, enactment, implementation, and oversight.
“We therefore encourage MDAs to ensure that the projects and programmes are informed by bottom-up consultation. This will ensure that projects and programmes budgeted for reflect the needs of the sector MDAs have jurisdiction over. Just as projects, when completed, are expected to be utilized for the greater good of all, I encourage all graduating students to see their graduation as a starting point for higher levels of aspiration,” he said.
In his address, Director General of National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Professor Abubakar Suleiman Olanrewaju averred that the Institute is the only statutory body charged with the responsibility of serving as the capacity-building and think tank agency for strengthening practices that deepen legislative and democratic governance in Nigeria.
He said, “One way NILDS executes its mandate is through its HND and Postgraduate programmes which are accredited by the relevant authorities. The academic programmes offered by NILDS in collaboration with its partners are helping to close the knowledge gap and capacity needs in the nation’s governance sector. Parliaments across Africa and beyond are also seizing the opportunity offered by NILDS to enhance their knowledge in specific areas of legislative and democratic governance.
“As I speak, our training department and resource persons are engaged in capacity development for members of the budget committees from the Parliament of the Republic of Uganda. We are also working with development partners and CSOs in promoting inclusion in governance, strengthening the nation’s resilience to climate change and strengthening governance structures and the local level as well helping to ignite patriotism amongst students at all levels towards supporting democracy in Nigeria.
“The graduands before you today are another output indicator of the impact of NILDS on knowledge acquisition and enhancement of professional competencies in Nigeria. Once enrolled in our programmes, these students have successfully completed their training in their chosen fields, such as HND Parliamentary Administration, HND Official Reporting, and Post Graduate Diploma (PGD) in Election and Political Party Management.
“Others who enrolled in Masters in Law, Legislative Drafting (LL.M.), Masters in Legislative Studies (MLS), Masters in Elections and Party Politics (MEPP) and Masters in Parliamentary Administration (MPD) have also successfully completed their programmes.”
While acknowledging that all of the Students performed very well, the NILDS helmsman averred that the “performance shows that female students topped their class in nearly all of the courses. This is a further reminder that given equal opportunity to learn, there is no limit for the girl child. I therefore urge stakeholders across all levels of our society to continue to strive to address the barriers that widen gender gaps with regards to access to education.”
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