Oyebanji’s Massive Investment in Education Consolidates Ekiti’s Place as Fountain of Knowledge 
The BAO Impact Series No. 25
BY ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA
Education is a legacy that is cherished in Ekiti land since time immemorial and Governor Biodun Oyebanji has been making efforts to ensure that the sector grows under his administration.
Being a son of a teacher himself, the Governor knows the value of education as a pathway to greatness for any child hence the massive investment in the sector by the government he leads.
Under the watch of Governor Oyebanji, there has been an increase in enrolment in public schools because the huge funds ploughed into infrastructure there and manpower development are beginning to yield dividends.
The people living in the grassroots in the state appreciate more access to education granted their wards as they are now proud to take their children to public primary and secondary schools because of the existence of facilities that make learning conducive.
With over N14 billion spent on renovation and construction of 203 public schools, the Oyebanji Administration has made a big statement of its commitment to boost learning by providing the needed infrastructure needed by the teachers and their pupils for optimal performance.
Facilities like classrooms, staff rooms, assembly halls, hostels, dining halls, laboratories, libraries, sick bays/health centres, ICT centres made newly constructed or renovated by the Oyebanji Administration have given comfort to students and has added filip to their hunger for knowledge.
Security of lives and property in school environment is of paramount concern to the administration and in the light of this, construction of perimeter fencing round the schools was a great priority to Mr Governor and his administration.
Another area in the education sector where the Oyebanji Administration has scored high is consolidation of manpower in public schools through recruitment of more teaching and non-teaching staff.
With about 2,000 new teachers recruited into primary and secondary schools in the state to fill the vacancies occasioned for retirement, death and other exigencies, the public education system is on the full throttle to ensure that high standards are maintained for the benefit of the system.
The payment of N700 million as Running Grants has assisted in meeting the basic official needs of school officers to keep the system going. The sum of N1.2 billion paid as examination fees of students has provided a big relief to them and their parents.
The administration has also excelled in the regular payment of counterpart funds to the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) to attract funding to boost infrastructure and provision of instructional materials.
Since Governor Oyebanji’s ascension to power in October 2022, the state has not defaulted in paying its counterpart funds to UBEC and this bears testimony to his commitment to ensure that the basic education sub-sector is on solid footing.
Training and retraining of teachers occupies a special place in the education agenda of the Oyebanji Administration with thousands of teachers benefiting from many capacity-building programmes.
The administration has also committed enormous resources to its bursary and scholarship schemes. Thousands of Ekiti students in tertiary institutions across the country have benefited from bursaries paid by the government.
Ekiti enjoys one of the most vibrant scholarship schemes in the country with the government assisting many of its students to pursue their masters degree and PhD programmes within and outside the country.
Besides, the Oyebanji Administration has not neglected the tertiary institutions owned and funded by it and this explains why attention has been paid to them in infrastructure upgrade and other areas of support.
Apart from paying arrears of subvention inherited, it is on record that the administration has also increased the subvention these tertiary institutions to enable them meet their needs to keep their standing firmly on their feet.
The $80 million facility secured from Africa Development Bank (AfDB) in aid of the Ekiti Knowledge Zone (EKZ) is seen as a game changer to launch the state on the path of becoming a hub of information technology and a future Silicon Valley.
Surely, the Oyebanji Administration has invested massively in education and the impact of the turnaround in the sector has consolidated the gains achieved by the previous administration to the benefit of pupils, students, teachers, parents and guardians.
To consolidate on the achievements recorded in the education sector, the people of Ekiti State have another opportunity on 20th June, 2026 to keep Governor Oyebanji in office with their votes for this sectoral development to continue.
Ogunmola is the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media (Print Media)