The state government of Osun has announced the closure of over 600 private schools, primarily primary schools, that do not fulfill the state’s basic standards.

The Education Commissioner, Folorunsho Bamisayemi, said the shutdown was part of the government’s endeavor to ensure sanity in the education sector during an Inter-ministerial Press briefing held at the State Secretariat in Abere.

“We have declared a war on mushroom schools. We have zero-tolerance for quacks in the system and schools that do not meet standards. We know the danger of mushroom schools because once anyone damages the education foundation of a child it becomes difficult to build a solid structure on it.

“Starting from the ministry, we have reviewed our department of schools to ensure greater efficiency. We have segmented the department to supervise basic and post-basic schools. Anyone who wants to start a school must produce a TRCN Certificate, among other requirements. We no longer grant licenses just because someone has spare funds to spend.

“We have set minimum standards and also given provisional registrations to some schools, that runs for a window of two years, during which we ensure proper monitoring. If after two years, the benchmark isn’t met, it attracts outright closure,” he said.

The commissioner, on the other hand, expressed disappointment that the 11 mega schools created by the previous government were underutilized.

Source: The Nations