By Funmilayo Adeyemi
The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has developed a national special and inclusive basic education implementation guidelines to accommodate children of special needs in schools across the country.
The Executive Secretary, UBEC, Aisha Garba, said this on Monday in Abuja at a Two-Day Stakeholders’ Engagement Workshop on Strengthening State Actors’ Capacity for Effective Implementation of Inclusive and Special Education in Basic Education Institutions in Nigeria.
Garba was represented by the UBEC Deputy Executive Secretary, (Technical), Rasak Akinyemi.
She said the essence of the engagement was to build the capacity of stakeholders from the 36 states of the country and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on the need to care and drive support for children of special people need.
According to her, the education guidelines is not merely a policy formation but must translate into operational and clearly defined responsibility of UBEC and SUBEB.
She said this would administer teachers and school based management committees and communities with the knowledge to enhance the well-being of children of special needs.
“This engagement comes at a critical period in Nigeria’s education reform agenda.
“While access to schooling has expanded considerably over the past decade, evidence continues to show that children with disabilities remain disproportionately excluded from enrolment, participation, progression and learning achievement.”
She called for practical implementation pathways, monitoring indicators and institutional coordination mechanisms that required a sustainable service delivery.
According to her, international evidence from UNESCO and UNICEF indicates that inadequate early identification, inaccessible learning environments and limited teacher preparedness remain major obstacles to inclusive education.
She explained that the National Special and Inclusive Basic Education Minimum Standards established measurable benchmarks for governance, infrastructure, accessibility, teacher competencies, curriculum adaptation, assistive technology, learner assessment, safeguarding and quality assurance.
Garba said the implementation guidelines clearly defined the responsibilities of UBEC, State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs), Local Government Education Authorities, school administrators, teachers and communities in delivering inclusive education.
She added that the Functional Difficulty Early Identification Tool would facilitate early detection of developmental, sensory, cognitive, communication and behavioural challenges among young learners.
“The introduction of this tool represents a strategic shift from reactive intervention to preventive and evidence-based educational planning.
“However, standards and tools alone cannot transform educational outcomes. Their effectiveness depends on strong institutional capacity, coordinated implementation and continuous monitoring,” she said.
On her part, the UNICEF Education Officer, Mrs Blessing Afuwai, expressed UNICEF’s commitment to support UBEC in the formulation and delivery of policies and programmes of children of special needs.
Afuwai said every child had the right to learn in a safe, supportive and inclusive environment, stressing that early identification of learning needs and disabilities was essential to improving educational outcomes.
She encouraged participants to actively engage in the training and cascade the knowledge and skills acquired to teachers and education personnel in their respective states to expand the impact of the initiative.
Earlier, the Acting Director, Special Education, UBEC, Dr Chijioke Onwuzurike, called for inter-sectoral collaboration of inclusive education from among the stakeholders to drive the national policy of inclusive education across schools.
Onwuzurike said the programme would deepen participants’ understanding of the national standards, implementation guidelines, capacity-building manual and the Functional Difficulty Early Identification Tool.
According to her, effective implementation of inclusive education requires collaboration among education, health, social welfare and other sectors.
“Nigeria has made remarkable progress in establishing policy and institutional frameworks for inclusive education through the Federal Ministry of Education, UBEC and other strategic partners.
“However, evidence continues to show that the greatest implementation gap exists between policy development and effective service delivery at State, Local Government and school levels.
“Bridging this implementation gap requires technically competent state actors equipped with practical tools, standardised procedures and measurable implementation strategies,” she said.
Onwuzurike said Nigeria currently operated more than 45 Early Childhood Development service delivery platforms across education, health, nutrition, agriculture and social protection sectors, but noted that inadequate coordination had resulted in fragmented service delivery.
She expressed concern that about 40 per cent of Nigerian children under the age of five were stunted, while approximately 52 per cent were not developmentally ready for school.
She added that many children with developmental disabilities were not identified until between the ages of five and 10, in spite of evidence showing that intervention during the first three years of life produced the best outcomes.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Ekemini Ladejobi