Only 807 Pry Schools Have Toilet Facilities, 542 With Suitable Offices
•C’ttee Recommends Demolition, Renovation of Decayed Buildings
THERE is an alarming decadence of infrastructure in public primary and secondary schools in Osun State.
The report of Osun Education Summit organised by Governor Ademola Adeleke indicated that half of the schools, both primary and secondary, were suffering from conducive learning environment which is part of the hindrances to having functional education in the state.
Aside infrastructure, public schools in the state are lacking Information Communication Technology centres, sporting facilities and recreational centres.
According to the report which was exclusively obtained by OSUN DEFENDER on Monday, a total of 6907 classrooms in primary and secondary schools were in extremely bad state.
It would be recalled that the Osun Education Committee chaired by Prof. Oyesoji Aremu, had on September 20, submitted the report to Adeleke who promised to study and implement the recommendations.
Analyzing the infrastructural decadence, the committee disclosed that only 4,838 (49.6%) of the existing 9,795 primary schools classrooms were in “fairly good condition.”
This indicated that 4957 (49.4%) classrooms are dilapidated.
Currently, a total of 1,340 primary schools are in the state as of the end of 2022/2023 academic session.
Of the 1,340 primary schools, 647 are in urban areas and while 693 are in rural areas with total number of pupils standing at 213,904.
According to the report, in all the schools, only 542 have suitable offices for the head teachers, implying that about 798 schools have no suitable office and cabinet for storing documents.
“On health related facilities, 807 schools have toilet facilities, 666 have portable water source, 742 have sanitation/ refuse bin, 1,090 have feeding kiosk/centers and 724 have first aid kits.
“It is alarming to discover that in the 21 century where ICT is essential and crucial for teaching and learning, only 266 (19.9%) out of 1,340 primary schools have ICT centers.
“In terms of library, only 303 schools have library facilities while 249 have laboratories/workshops.
“Just only 461 have electricity and or other power source, 390 have perimeter fence and 652 have good access roads.
“Also, just 946 (70.6%) out of the 1,340 primary schools have sports field for sports and recreational activities, which are expected to aid psychomotor and affective domains of learning”, said the report.
It was also revealed that 5,286 out of about 6,151 teachers available as at the end of 2022/2023 academic session have teachers’ seats and tables, while just 58,738 desks/chairs are available for 213,903 pupils.
The committee, however, noted in the reported that some of the available chairs and desks are not suitable for use, while dilapidated blocks of classrooms are common to most schools in the rural areas which now serve as abode for miscreants.
Revealing the state of infrastructure in secondary schools, the committee explained in the report that about 6,500 classrooms are needed in the 371 secondary schools in the state.
A total of 387 secondary schools were in the state as of the end of 2022/2023 academic session, with 371 having both Junior and Senior Secondary School system, according to the report.
Of the 371 schools, 205 are in the urban areas while 166 are in the rural areas.
The schools have a total of 4,370 classrooms in which only 2,463 “are fairly good while 1,950 are extremely bad.”
A part of the report reads: “Virtually, all the school halls of Mega Schools are in deplorable states with some having their roofs blown off and the buildings now habited by domestic animals and reptiles. Some of the classrooms now have no doors and windows while desks and chairs are bad.
“It was observed that the classrooms in the Mega Schools were under-utilized due to low enrolment of students. That notwithstanding, chairs and desks are not sufficient. · There is inadequate or in some cases no source of water supply. Most toilet facilities are in deplorable conditions.
“As for other schools (non-mega), blocks of classrooms are in terrible states with blown off roofs, crack walls, absence of doors and windows, as well as gross insufficiency of desks and chairs etc;
“Large number of schools are without perimeter fence and bad access roads. Laboratories, where present, are without essential apparatus and chemicals. Most of the schools are without libraries. Those with libraries are stocked with obsolete books or without books while some are without furniture at all.
“Other facilities such as sport field, water source, power source, computer sets, teachers’ furniture, first aid kit etc are grossly inadequate.
“Only 275 schools of the 371 have sports fields, 226 schools have some forms of laboratories, 242 have libraries that are not adequately stocked, 195 have first aid boxes and 107 have school halls that need rehabilitation.
“Little maintenance across all types of school is being done via intervention from Old Students and PTA.”
The committee recommended adequate funding of education sector and massive renovation of schools and demolition of decayed buildings.
OSUN DEFENDER had in its October 6, 2023 edition reported the poor state of public schools in the state. An article titled “Education in Osun, the gains, reveres and suggestions for a rebirth” was also published in the same edition.
Ismaeel Uthman is an Editor, Media Consultant with over 14 years experience in print journalism.
A consummate writer and reporter, Uthman has received accolades for his works, especially one that appeals for good governance and community development. He is a recipient of many laurels, including the Best Investigative Reporter (Print) Award of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Osun State Council, in 2020.
