Bestway College Gboko

UPDATE
BENUE SCHOOLS TO RESUME SEPT 21
By Jimin Geoffrey
Benue State Government has approved Monday, 21st September, 2020 for resumption of all schools across the state.
Commissioner for Education, Professor Dennis Ityavyar who announced this today at the Benue Peoples House Makurdi while briefing journalists said both public and private primary, secondary and tertiary institutions are to abide by the directive.
He explained that the resumption is for first term of 2020 and 2021 academic session, stressing that third term for other categories of pupils and students except JSS 3 and SSS 3 had been cancelled including payment of school fees.
"Let me emphasize on the issue of school fees so there is no confusion because if third term is cancelled, school fees for the term is also cancelled. But in the case of JSS 3 and SSS 3, parents are expected to pay their third term fees. However, those who have not done third term, they don't need to pay fees and this applies to private and public schools," Prof Ityavyar clarified.
According to the Education Commissioner, it was the collective decision of stakeholders in the education sector in the state that all tertiary institutions be fumigated and COVID-19 protocols strictly observed.
He stated that parents are to provide facemasks and hand sanitizers while school authorities provide hand washing facilities and monitor compliance with social distancing in terms of sitting arrangement.
Professor Ityavyar stated that schools with high population would have to operate morning and afternoon sessions to avoid congestion, stressing that strict monitoring would be carried out to ensure compliance.
The Education Commissioner who acknowledged the compliance of Benue people with COVID-19 protocols said first term would end on 18th December, 2020 while second term of 2020 and 2021 would commence on 7th January 2021 and end on March the same year.
Professor Ityavyar, in another development, urged Benue people with requisite qualifications to apply for the National Teachers Scheme under the Universal Basic Education Board, UBEC, adding that interested persons could contact SUBEB for details.



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Gentlemen of the press and distinguished personalities.

The National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), which serves as the umbrella body and voice of private school owners in the country, would like to APPRECIATE the efforts of both the Federal Government and various state governments in their bid to curb the spread of the novel Coronavirus in the country.

Recall that before the lockdown announced by the President in his first broadcast to the nation on Sunday 29th March 2020, private and public schools in the country had since been closed.

Ever since that closure, NAPPS at the National & state levels has been engaging the Federal Government and state governments respectively on safety protocols for schools ahead of resumption.

1. *Readiness of Private schools for reopening of schools*

NAPPS, as a responsive and responsible association, has shown its readiness to ensure the safe phased reopening of schools for JSS3 and SSS3 students in private schools in the country by ensuring member schools strictly adhere to the safety protocols recommended by Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within the school environments which are as follows:

I Provision of running water and soap for hand-washing.

ii. Provision of Infra-red thermometers to monitor staff, students and visitors temperature.

iii. Provision of Sick Bay to be managed by qualified health personnel.

iv. Sensitisation workshop for teaching and non-teaching staff.

v. Provision of Alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

vi. The seating arrangement of 2 meters distance from each other both in classes and school buses.

vii Provision of face masks for staff.

viii. Enforcement of face masks for students, visitors, etc.

ix. Regular washing of surfaces.

x. Decontamination of school environment.

xi. Provision of Personal Protective Equipment.

It should also be noted that our members had also attended various virtual sensitisation programmes on ways to maintain safe & healthy school environments to prevent the spread of COVID- 19.

To this end, Private schools are fully prepared for school reopening with various safety materials affordably provided to safeguard the health of individuals within the school environments coupled with strict adherence to safety guidelines.

*3. NAPPS position in respect of the announcement of suspension of WAEC, NECO, etc, examinations for SSS3 students by Federal Ministry of Education.*

The Board of Trustees and National Executive Council of NAPPS met online on Friday, 10th July 2020 and came up with the following positions:

1. Private Schools are ready for reopening of schools with standard safety protocols in place to prevent the spread of Coronavirus within the school premises.

ii. We also agreed with stakeholders for the phased reopening of schools for JSS3 and SSS3 students only with strict observance of the safety protocols within the school environment.

iii. Private Schools under NAPPS are ready to resume with strict adherence to the safety protocols advised by the NCDC.

iv. Based on our readiness to safely reopen schools in phases starting with JSS3 and more importantly SSS3 students who will be sitting for their SSSCE conducted by WAEC, NECO, etc. We are using this medium to call on the Federal Ministry of Education to revisit its reversal on resumption and suspension of 2020 public examinations (WAEC, NECO, etc) for the following reasons:

a. To avoid emotional trauma that SSS3 students will be subjected to as a result of the cancellation of 2020 SSSCE. For this reason, we will advise the government to deploy the services of Clinical Psychologists to evaluate the state of minds of these students whenever they are ready to sit for these examinations due to mental trauma that will arise as a result of the suspension of these examinations after rigorous preparations by students.

b. To avoid a situation where Nigerian students will be forced to seek an alternative way of writing these examinations by approaching neighbouring countries such as Ghana among others which will not be good for the image of the country.

c. As a result of a prolonged closure, the majority of students may likely lose interest in education and embrace social vices inimical to their wellbeing and public safety as well.

d. Consequently, upon the announcement of the suspension of the 2020 WAEC examinations for SSS3 students, parents of students in private schools have started to approach the management of private schools demanding the refund of the money paid on behalf of their children to partake in 2020 WAEC examinations. We wish to state that private schools had already remitted to the examination bodies. Their reasons are premised on the decision to utilise the refunds to approach other neighbouring countries so that their children can sit for 2020 WAEC examinations outside the country.

e. Moreover, phased reopening of schools for SSS3 and JSS3 will ensure there will be fewer students in schools than usual which makes physical distancing easier to enforce.

e. Task Force can be instituted by Federal and state governments to monitor and ensure strict compliance during the conduct of the examinations.

f. Considering the level of success achieved so far with the reopening of airports for domestic flights through strict adherence to safety protocols for passengers, we are sure that the same level of success will be recorded when schools are reopened.

g. It should be noted that immediately after the announcement of the suspension of 2020 WAEC examinations for SSS3 students by the Federal Government, NAPPS contacted WAEC Head of National Office who confirmed the position of the Federal Minister of Education. He also stated that WAEC would have to wait for further instructions and as such, the position of the Federal Ministry of Education concerning the suspension would stand in Nigeria.

h. Even though we appreciate the safety concerns of the Federal Government, private schools are fully prepared for safe reopening of schools with investment already made to procure safety equipment as advised by Nigeria Council for Disease Control (NCDC) to ensure the safe reopening of schools nationwide.

To this end, NAPPS is appealing to the Federal Government to review its stand on suspension of 2020 public examinations (WAEC, NECO etc).

3. *Federal Government N2.3 Trillion stimulus package for private schools & other Businesses*

NAPPS had engaged the Federal Government through Economic Sustainability Committee on the need to support private schools to cushion the effect of COVID - 19 pandemic on the sub-sector. Our justification for requesting palliatives from Federal Government was borne out of the fact that the abrupt closure of schools by the government to protect the students in the country from the outbreak of the pandemic. Unfortunately, this has brought a lot of untold hardship to private school owners who rely heavily on school fees to meet up with obligations such as payment of staff salaries, operational costs and repayment of loans obtained from various financial institutions.

For this reason, the recent announcement of the approval of N2.3 trillion Stimulus package to support businesses by the Federal Government with the inclusion of private schools is a welcome development due to potential impact of the stimulus in saving private education sub-sector from imminent collapse as a result of COVID - 19 pandemic.

NAPPS, therefore, appreciates the federal government for the swift response to our request for the support. We are therefore hopeful that the Federal Government will soon release guidelines for private schools to benefit from this support.

NAPPS is equally appreciative of single loan digit approved by Federal Government through CBN N5O billion COVID -19 intervention funds.

4. *Government support of Private schools with personal protective equipment.*

The Federal Government's proposed support of schools with Personal Protection Equipment underscores safety concerns of the government to its students and citizens; and we appreciate this gesture from the government just as member schools are fully ready to reciprocate this gesture by maintaining healthy school environments in private schools nationwide.

5. *Conclusion*

Once again, NAPPS appreciates the efforts of the Federal government to ensure the safe phased reopening of schools and for the release of N2.3 trillion stimulus package to support teachers' salary and CBN N5O Billion single digits intervention loan to cushion the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Once more, l wish to reiterate that private schools are fully equipped to ensure the safe reopening of schools and as such, we will appreciate it if the Federal Government can reconsider its stand on the suspension of 2020 WAEC, NECO, etc, examinations for the emotional wellbeing of already traumatised students in the country.

Therefore, we are willing to have a meeting with Federal Minister and other stakeholders to assure the Federal Minister of Education of the safety protocols that have been put in place in private schools to ensure the safety of students nationwide.

I thank all the media organizations represented during this press conference.

Thank you and God bless!

*Chief ‘Yomi Otubela, Fcma*

*National President, NAPPS*

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FG has agreed to pay salaries of private school teachers owed during the lockdown- Private School owners association president, Yomi Otubela says
The President of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, Yomi Otubela, says the Federal government has agreed to pay the salaries of private school teachers that are being owed by their school management since the lockdown started in March.
A number of private school teachers have come out to cry for help as they have not been paid by their management since March when schools were shut down due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The school management insists they cannot pay salaries since they have also not made money by way of school fees.
Speaking on TVC on Monday morning, July 13, Otubela said the association forwarded a proposal to the Economic Sustainability Committee headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, for the government to pay the salaries of the private school owners and that an approval has been granted to the proposal by the Federal Executive Council.
''We have written to the Federal government to understand that these teachers are teaching Nigerian children and that they need to keep them and their families together during the lockdown.
So the Federal government has listened to our request. We requested that the teachers salaries in private schools should be taken over by the government during the months of the lockdown. We also requested for a single digit loan for private schools to cushion the effect of the COVID19. We requested for support for schools that have existing loans, that they (FG) should liase on our behalf with the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN and CBN will liase with commercial banks and other financial institutions to ensure that they give them soft landing in terms of moratorium to repay and deduction in the interest loan.
The Federal government has approved that they will take over the payment of teachers salaries.
The proposal was sent to the Economic Sustainability Committee headed by the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and it was approved by the Federal Executive Council.
We are already talking to them to know the modalities for the disbursement''.
He however pointed out that it is only private schools registered under its association that will benefit from the Federal government's bailout.



Coronavirus otherwise known as COVID-19 Vaccine trials is set to begin in Nigeria soon as processes underway to start by the World Health Organisation WHO.

The Officer in charge, WHO Nigeria and member of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Dr. Fiona Braka, said this on Friday in Abuja, at the 24th joint national briefing of the committee.

She also said that 89 vaccines are being developed globally, including seven in clinical evaluation and several therapeutics in clinical trials to tackle the COVID-19pandemic. She said, “Nigeria has also expressed interest to be part of this solidarity trial and efforts are underway to start the process in Nigeria too.”



Dr. Fiona Braka- Vaccines trials to begin in Nigeria – WHO

According to her, on the subject of vaccines and clinical trials for Covid-19, research and development is an important aspect of the response and researchers around the world are working hard on accelerating the development of vaccines and therapeutics for Covid-19. She said the WHO has launched various working groups to accelerate various aspects of vaccine development.

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Together with global health actors and partners, over the past week, WHO launched the Access to Covid-19 Tools ACT Accelerator, a global collaboration to accelerate development for equitable access to new Covid-19 diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines. “We have a total of 89 vaccines that are in development globally, including seven in clinical evaluation and several therapeutics are in clinical trials. WHO is committed to ensuring that as medicines and vaccines are developed, they are shared equitably with all countries and people.

“We do have the solidarity trial which is an international clinical trial to help find an effective treatment for Covid-19, launched by the WHO and partners. More than 100 countries have joined the solidarity trial and to date, over 1,200 patients have been randomized from the first five countries to evaluate the safety and efficacy full drug and drug combinations,” Braka said.

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