National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, Nigeria (NAPPS) says the challenge of paucity of funds has been hindering the provision of qualitative education in the country.

The National President of the association, Mr Yomi Otubela made the assertion at the 14th National Conference of the association in Abuja on Wednesday.

The conference has the theme: “Transformation and Innovation in Education: NAPPS-Future Proofing Nigeria Workspace”.

Otubela said that majority of financial institutions were not willing to lend to the educational institutions at concessionary interest rates.

According to him, paucity of funds, therefore, has a lot of impact on school growth and development as a standard private school should be well equipped with facilities to aid learning.

“The costs of providing these facilities are so enormous for average private school owners to shoulder without some form of intervention in form of collaboration.

“Given this challenge, NAPPS at the national level, has partnered with First bank and FCMB to offer loans to our members at concessionary interest rates.

“We thank God that quite a substantial number of proprietors have keyed into this arrangement with our partner banks to enjoy this opportunity.

“However, NAPPS at the national level is also committed to growing the NAPPS cooperative society into micro finance bank status where we can be of help to each other,” he said.

Otubela also bemoaned the issue of multiple taxation, saying that in spite of spite several passionate pleas to the authority to look into it, nothing had been done to review it.

He said that numerous changes in the education policies with their attendant implication for curriculum implementation had been a cause of concern as curriculum implementation was pivotal for the achievement of educational goals.

He, therefore, enjoined policy makers to always carry along various stakeholders in the process of policy planning and implementation.

Also, the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu Federal Ministry of Education, said the Federal Government had adopted practical education designed to meet the needs of its citizens in the area of technology and science.

Adamu, who was represented by Mr Yaren Maikawuwa, of the Department of Senior Secondary, Gender Branch, said this was helping the citizens to be self-reliant and independent with a view to preferring solutions to the challenges.

“The era of do-it-alone is gone in the country. United we stand is the slogan.

“The ministry in its efforts to evolve education that is suitable for the environment has inculcated in its curricula entrepreneurial skills acquisition designed to equip our leaders to become self-employed and employers of labour.

“Current reforms in education enable the learner to be innovative and producers rather than mere consumers of finished products.

“Of equal importance is the inclusion of trade subjects in the academic curriculum to equip our young learners with practical skills of developing self-actualisation,” the minister  said.

The Minister of State for FCT, Dr Ramatu Tijani, said there was need to partner private service providers to ensure quality education services were provided to residents of the territory.

Mallam Abdulrazak Leramoh, the Acting Secretary, FCT Education Secretariat, who represented Tijani, said the FCT administration would continue to partner with NAPPS to deliver on the objectives of providing quality service education in the FCT.

“As we partner together, we will continue to engage with the private school owners and the areas of their challenges are shared with us.

“And we will continue to assist them so that they can operate in a very smooth environment that will promote learning and teaching,” he said.

Dr Omahachi Oklobia, a lecturer of Public Administration. Nasarawa State University, said there was need for NAPPS to leverage on the emerging opportunities using innovative educational technology solutions.

“Some of the challenges they (NAPPS) face in my view are also opportunities.

“You can sit down and say you have challenges and do nothing about it or see it as an opportunity, work on it and find a way out particularly in the area of technology and innovation,” he said.

Hajia Samira Jibir, the Director of Conference, said the conference was designed to enable teachers to be more prepared, focused and be able to deliver to meet the current aspirations and societal needs of the nation. (NAN)