Dr. Aminu Salisu Tsauri
The overwhelming political support enjoyed by Malam Dikko Umar Radda, PhD that saw his successful election as the executive Governor of Katsina State with a landslide victory from the 34 Local Government Areas of Katsina State, set a conducive working atmosphere for the Governor to steer the ship of the state devoid of rancour and much hitch.
The governor has shown an avowed zeal and determination to make strategic initiatives and plans in all sectors of human endeavors for the sole aim of putting Katsina State on the right track of security growth and development.
The Governor’s approach to education, which is perhaps one of the most important sectors, is not only unprecedented but revolutionary.
The first step was the restructuring of the education sector by renaming the Ministry of Education to Ministry of Secondary and Basic Education, which will ensure inclusiveness and better service delivery, both at the secondary and basic levels.
In the same vein, another Ministry was also created to take charge of higher Education and named Ministry for Higher Technical and Vocational Education. The focus was to imbibe the culture of Technical and Vocational Education among students of tertiary institutions to ensure self-reliance after graduation. The existing youth craft village in the State was put under the supervision of the new Ministry,. This was coupled with the appointment of a seasoned academician per excellence, Professor AbdulHamid Ahmed as its first Honourable Commissioner.
In order to march words with action, Governor Radda approved the conversion of the Katsina State Institute of Technology and Management to a full pledged University. This is indeed a giant stride towards ensuring technology based society in line with the current World trend of technological advancements.
The next approach was the strengthening of the sector’s workforce by recruiting over seven thousand (7000) teachers in Primary and Secondary Schools on a permanent and pensionable basis. This was followed by the Governor’s gracious approval of the colossal sum of N2.7 billion as counterpart funding for the construction of 75 new Secondary Schools in collaboration with World Bank under the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) project. These efforts will no doubt, substantially address the dearth of educational infrastructures in both basic and secondary levels.
The Students’ welfare has been given the required attention, as the bursary allowances to Katsina state students are being paid with relative regularity. Recently Governor Radda approved the release of the sum of Five Hundred and Fifty Five Million Eight hundred and Ninety Seven Thousand Six Hundred and Forty Eight (N555, 897, 648:00) Naira to settle scholarship allowances to 37, 799 Katsina state fresh and continuing students of 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 respectively. The sum of One Hundred and Seventy Four Million Two Hundred and Ninety Three Thousand One Hundred and Sixty Naira (N174, 293, 160) was for the payment of Eleven Thousand Six Hundred and Five (11,605) Fresh Students of 2021/2022 academic session, while Twenty Six Thousand One Hundred and Ninety Four (26,194) continuing students are to be paid the sum of Three Hundred and Sixty Nine Million Nine Hundred and Fourteen Thousand Five Hundred and Eighty Eight (369, 914, 588:00) Naira as their scholarship allowances of 2022/2023 academic session. Earlier His Excellency, Governor Dikko Umar Radda, PhD has since approved the release and payment of Six Hundred and Forty Million Six Hundred and Forty Eight thousand Five hundred and Forty Six Naira (N640, 648, 546:00) for settlement of scholarship allowances to Katsina State Students of 2020/2021 fresh and 2021/2022 continuing respectively. Equally, the Governor approved the release and payment of another N 38 million as maintenance allowances for Katsina State students studying at Nigerian Law School.
The introduction of award of academic excellence for Students of tertiary institutions of the State, first of its kind in the history of Katsina State scholarship board has received the Governor’s blessings where he exhibited the act of leadership by example to personally award the sum of N10.5 million to the 210 selected students with excellent academic performance of Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 3.50 to 4.50 and above. Each student went home with the sum of Fifty Thousand Naira (N50, 000). This noble gesture by the Governor will no doubt ensure rewarding hard work and encourage academic competition for educational development of the State.
The sponsorship of the first batch of 41 Katsina State indigenes from indigent family with poor family background to Egypt to read MBBS that engulfed the sum of N900 million and another 68 Students being prepared to study Artificial Intelligence, Bio-economy, Radiology and Anesthesia in India and China under the Dikko Radda’s foreign scholarship programme is most commendable. The measure will definitely strengthen the manpower capacity in the State’s health care system.
Notwithstanding, however, the State is one of the frontline States battling with the menace of incessant banditry and kidnappings, which by extension bedevilling the progress of education in the State, the Governor has not only proffered lasting solution to the wanton despoilment being afflicted to most of the vulnerable and poor people and students living in the frontline insecurity prone Local Government Areas of the State, but faced the scourge head-on. Governor Radda’s commitment to combating banditry and kidnappings extended to proactive actions by creating a Ministry for internal security and introduced Community Watch Corps (CWC) in the State and approved the recruitment and training of 2,400 gallant Youth and 1,456 officers to checkmate and fiercely engage in the fight against the bandits and kidnappers. The measure is yielding positive results as the activities of the bandits are reduced significantly.
Katsina State is one of the signatories of the Memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) securing $13 million facility for the implementation of North West prevention of incessant insecurity tendencies in the region; this is indeed a milestone effort and achievement that will check the security challenges of the region.
In consideration of the above achievements and accomplishments enumerated out of many, too numerous to mention due to lack of space, Malam Dikko Umar Radda, PhD received a well deserved selection as the best Governor of the year 2023 by Leadership Newspapers.
The Executive Secretary Katsina State Scholarship Board Dr. Aminu Salisu on behalf of the Board, members of Staff and the entire Katsina State Students, wishes to rejoice with our amiable, proactive and workaholic Governor, Malam Dikko Umar Radda, PhD for attaining this feat on his first year anniversary on the throne of leadership as the Executive Governor of Katsina State.
We wish Governor Allah’s guidance in giving the state patriotic and developmental leadership and successful tenures of office.
Long live, Governor Radda!
Long live Katsina State
Long live Katsina State Scholarship Board.
Dr. Aminu Salisu Tsauri
Executive Secretary
Katsina State scholarship board.
