The Sokoto State government says it will spend N8.3 billion on the renovation of selected basic and secondary schools.

The Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Ahmed Ala, said this in Abuja on Friday.

He said the projects involve famous secondary schools, adding that they have already reached 90 per cent completion.

Mr Ala said the administration of Governor Aliyu Sokoto was determined to provide the best teaching and learning environment for students and teachers.

“I am confident that things are moving in the right direction because I have the zeal and determination to change the course of history, but the most important thing is the assurance of the governor,’’ he said.

The commissioner further said 240 secondary schools were being given a facelift under the Adolescent Girls Initiative Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) initiative.

“In each of these secondary schools, there is provision for washing facilities, toilets, and other facilities.

“This is because we have come to realise that one of the things girls find difficult when they come to school is how to go and ease themselves.

“Even their parents detest the idea of allowing boys and girls to share the same toilet. So, under the AGILE programme, toilets are being constructed separately, and water provided to each of these 240 secondary schools is under construction,” he said.

He said the state government recognised the importance of skills development in education delivery; hence, it has undertaken the retraining of teachers in basic and secondary education.

“We are also radically undertaking teacher training because we found out that so many teachers do not have the necessary knowledge, skills, and competence to teach in the secondary schools.

“So far, we have done two sets of training and have been able to train 2,500 teachers,” he said.

The commissioner said the state was partnering with some development partners, such as UNICEF, to make reading materials available to students.

“We are working with partners such as UNICEF and some other foundations. One of the foundations wants to establish 10 libraries in 10 schools as part of efforts to revive reading culture among students,” Mr Ala said.

(NAN)