The Bayelsa State Government will on Friday formally launch the State Education Trust Fund as part of its action plan to sustain the huge investment in the education sector.
Governor Henry Seriake Dickson had on March 31, 2017, signed a bill passed by the State House of Assembly into law, in order to give legal backing to the Education Trust Fund.
The law makes it compulsory for different categories of workers including contractors and civil servants in the state to pay education levies.
The State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Daniel Iworiso-Markson said on Sunday that the idea of the Trust Fund was novel as it will help sustain the massive investment the Restoration Government has made in the education sector since 2012.
He recalled that Governor Dickson had on February 14, 2012, declared a state of emergency in education because of the rot but seven years down the line there is a new narrative in the sector, which also includes the state’s impressive outing in external examinations like WAEC and NECO.
According to him, “Bayelsa used to be ranked at the bottom of external exams before the coming of the Dickson’s Administration but that has changed. We have since moved up the ladder as one of the top five leading states in the country. We have also drastically reduced the number of out of school children by 90%.
“Our model boarding schools which today has over 10,000 students mostly from poor indigent families on full government scholarships is also one of the revolutions that have happened in that sector. All of these needs to be sustained and the Education Trust Fund will take care of that”.
Iworiso-Markson disclosed that Mr Jim Ovia and Mr Benedict Peters renowned philanthropists, businessmen and the founders of Zenith Bank, one of Africa’s leading commercial banks and Aiteo Group, largest indigenous oil producing firm are the Special Guests/Key Launchers.
He added that the Corporate Launchers are all the multinational oil companies operating in Bayelsa State and the epoch event will hold by 11 am.
