From: Femi Oyelola, Kaduna
Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has announced the reduction of school fees in state-owned tertiary institutions.
The Governor disclosed this during a press conference held at the Government House, Kaduna, yesterday.
Gov Sani said the downward review of the school fees was in fulfilment of his electioneering.
He added that the reduction is in response to public outcry on the current fees being charged.
He said: “In response to the public outcry over the current fees being charged by tertiary institutions in Kaduna State and its effect on school enrolment and retention, I directed the heads of tertiary institutions in conjunction with the Ministry of Education to obtain relevant information on the extant fees regime in state-owned tertiary institutions.
“At the end of their assignment, they made the following observations and recommendations:
“That the extant fees regime in the state-owned tertiary institutions is burdensome and has led to a significant decline in student enrolments.
“The extant fees have made many students either abandon the pursuit of tertiary education or moved to alternative institutions.
“That to reverse the trend mentioned, it is imperative that a competitive fee model should be adopted in our tertiary institutions.
“That’s the competitive fee model that responds to current realities and promotes access to quality education.”
According to the governor, “As a caring and responsible government, we have accepted the recommendations and accordingly reviewed the fees downwards as follows:
“Kaduna State University (KASU) – current fee: N150, 000, reduced to N105, 000; Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, current fee: N100, 000, reduced to N50, 000; College of Education, Gidan Waya, N75, 000, reduced to N37, 500; Shehu Idris College of Health Sciences & Technology, Makarfi – HND courses current fee, N100, 000 reduced to N70, 000, ND Courses, N75, 000 slash to N52, 000; and Kaduna State College of Nursing, N100, 000 reduced to N70, 000.”