By Ujah Simon, Kaduna
The Connected Development (CODE), an NGO, on Tuesday handed over projects planning and monitoring tools to Kaduna State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to strengthen citizen’s participation and monitoring of SUBEB projects.
The Chief Executive Officer of CODE, Hamzat Lawal, who performed the handing over ceremony in Kaduna, explained that the tools were developed in partnership with the board.
He said that it was designed to mainstream School-Based Management Committees (SBMCs) into the board’s work plan and implementation.
He identified the tools as school projects nomination form and project monitoring framework.
According to him, the innovation would ensure participatory basic education spending, community ownership, transparency, and accountability in the implementation of basic education projects.
“The tools allow SBMCs to inform Kaduna SUBEB’s Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) annual work plans and access the list of school projects currently being implemented for effective oversight.
“They also allow SBMCs to participate in pre-contract implementation briefings between the board and contractors.
“The tools equally mandate project contractors to always pay courtesy calls on community leaders at the commencement of projects which we hope would be added in contracts award letters.”
He added that the tools would aid SMBCs at the school level, to inform the board on their school’s infrastructural priorities in a timely manner.
This, according to him, will form a pool from which Kaduna SUBEB could select projects from for its annual UBE work plan.
“We also believe it would facilitate effective monitoring and evaluation of school projects.”
Also speaking, Mr Kinsley Agu, CODE’s Team Lead in the state, explained that the participatory planning processes, allows the SBMCs to populate the project nomination form between January and February of every year.
Agu said that the completed form would be submitted to SBMC leadership at local government level, who would submit the completed forms to the Education Secretaries (ES) in Local Government Areas (LGAs).
“The ES will forward the forms to Kaduna SUBEB between April and May every year for the board to review them to form part of the UBE work plan for the following year.
“On participatory project monitoring process, a circular will be sent to the ES, LGA Chairmen and SBMCs, about projects to be contracted for them to participate in the processes.
“The SBMCs leadership at the LGA level will send circular and details of the projects to the SBMCs at ward and school level, including the joint project monitoring tool.
“SBMCs at the school level will use the tools to monitor projects implementation and submit findings back to the LGAs leadership who will submit findings to the ES and the board for appropriate action,” he said.
Mr Tijjani Abdullahi, the Executive Chairman of the board, while responding, thanked CODE for the support and pledged to make best use of the tools to strengthen transparency and accountability in projects implementation.
Abdullahi said that community ownership of school infrastructure had remained a serious challenge.
He added that the tools would help to strengthen community participation and ownership of school projects.
