The Anambra State Government has said it will establish minimum operating standards for public and private schools across the state to ensure they meet approved requirements.
The State Executive Council made the recommendation on Monday during its meeting at the Anambra State Government House, also known as Light House, Awka.
The Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Dr Law Mefor, disclosed this in a press release, warning that schools that fail to meet the standards risk closure.
The release read: “Council resolved to establish irreducible minimum standards of operation for both private and public primary schools in the state, after which schools that fail to meet the standards will be shut down.
“For the record, Anambra State Government has so far recruited 8,115 teachers for public primary and secondary schools and deployed 3,500 of them to mission-returned schools, while still paying their salaries and emoluments.”
The statement clarified that the government had no plan to reclaim mission-returned schools but expressed concern that some of them were not being properly managed. It warned that such schools could be reclaimed if they failed to improve.
The release added: “Council debunked fake news that government is planning to reclaim mission-returned schools, reiterating that government has no such plan.
“However, Council frowned at the poor standard in which some mission-returned primary schools are run and noted that these schools were voluntarily returned by government.
“It was also noted that many primary schools are currently under renovation as part of the counterpart-funding agreement between Anambra State and the Federal Government,” Mefor said.
The commissioner said the council also deliberated on the recent hostilities between Aguleri and Umuoba-Anam communities in the state. It also welcomed a Supreme Court ruling against the creation of autonomous communities in Anambra State.
The council urged those advocating the creation of autonomous communities to abandon the idea in line with the Supreme Court judgment and channel their efforts towards uniting and developing their communities as currently constituted.
Anambra govt sets irreducible standard for public, private schools, to shutdown culpable ones