Ondo State Government in the last six and a  half years has expended over N22 billion on schools’ infrastructural development across the state.

Areas touched include renovation, reconstruction and construction of over 900 school buildings, fencing, provisions of bole holes, laboratories, e -learning facilities and distribution of instructional materials.

Chairman, Ondo State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Victor Olabimtan declared this yesterday in his message to commemorate the 2023 teacher’s day celebration.

Olabimtan described the theme of this year’s 2023 World Teachers’ Day: “The Teacher We Need For The Education We Want: The global imperative to reverse the teacher shortage” as apt and fitting.

He said the theme tallies with the focus of the State Government under the leadership of Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu to continue to recruit qualified teachers to fill identified critical shortages in our schools.

In a press statement to mark the occasion and issued by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the intervention Agency in the Basic Education sector in the State, Bolu Ajijo, the SUBEB boss said teachers are special breed of people that must be accorded their rightful positions in the scheme of things in the society as it used to be in those days.

He said while growing up in the 50s and up to late 70s, teachers were adored and feared by their students and respected by the society, adding that teachers are arguably the most adored and respected members of every community next to the traditional rulers.

The former Speaker, Ondo House of Assembly called on teachers not to lose hope as the state government will continue to prioritize their welfare and conditions of service.

He used the occasion of the celebration to inform teachers and educators that the government has approved their careers tenure elongation to 65 years or 40 years in service depending on which comes first for those interested in the new scheme.

 He equally appealed to teachers to be good examples to the students under them in conduct and actions in and out of school environment in order to be good a good role model.

The chairman said, the Board in conjunction with the Universal Basic Education Commission, UBEC, Abuja, has trained and retrained teachers with some of them going overseas to up scale their skill in order to deliver efficiently and effectively on the new curricular.

While admonishing teachers to continue to deliver on their mandate, considering government’s huge investment in the sector, the SUBEB boss said the Board is already working on the need for the recruitment of additional teachers to fill up critical vacancies in our schools.