Osun has highest number of out-of-school students in south-west, says commissioner

Eluwole Adedipo, the Osun commissioner for education, says the state now has the highest number of out-of-school students in the south-west.

The commissioner described the development as problematic to the government.

NAN reports that Adedipo spoke on Tuesday in Osogbo during the defence of his ministry’s proposed budget for 2024.

The commissioner appeared before the joint committee on finance and appropriation of the Osun house of assembly.

He said Osun now has the highest number of out-of-school students in the south-west because many parents find it difficult to send their children to school.

He made the statement while highlighting the numerous challenges the education sector is facing in Osun.

The commissioner blamed the policies of previous administrations in the state for the woes confronting the education sector.

He said mega schools constructed by a previous administration led to several schools being subsumed into one.

Adedipo said this forced some students to drop out of school because of unavailable funds and logistics to get to locations of the new schools.

The commissioner also identified a serious shortage of qualified teachers as another major challenge in the sector, harping on the need to employ more teachers.

Saheed Fatunmise, chairman of the committee, advised the commissioner to conduct the teachers’ recruitment exercise on merit.

Fatunmise said he has confidence in the ability and capacity of the commissioner and therefore implored him to deploy his expertise to turn around the education sector so that Osun can regain its lost glory.