By Tony Agbugba
Nigeria’s education sector requires urgent reform and stronger collaboration between the government and faith-based institutions to produce graduates capable of addressing the nation’s development challenges.
This was the central resolution of a recent symposium organized to mark the 55th anniversary of St. Augustine College of Education, dubbed PROJECT T.I.M.E, under the theme: “Rebuilding Quality Education in Nigeria Through Collaboration Between Government and Mission Schools.”
The well-attended event, held at St. Agnes Catholic Church, Maryland, Lagos, brought together academics, education administrators, religious leaders, and policy advocates.
Speakers included former Lagos State Commissioner for Education, Mrs. Folasade Adefisayo; Vice-Chancellor of Augustine University, Ilara-Epe, Rev. Fr. Prof. Anthony Akinwale; Dean of the Faculty of Education, University of Lagos, Prof. Bayo Oladapo; Coordinator, Marriage and Family Life Unit, Lagos Archdiocese, Mrs. Bridget Itsueli, and Head of the Department of Philosophy, UNILAG, Prof. Anthony Okeregbe.
The speakers agreed that inadequate infrastructure, poverty, poor funding, and the lack of conducive learning environments remain the bane of growth in the education sector.
According to them, only coordinated reforms between the government and the Church can rescue the nation’s struggling education system and improve the quality of teachers and graduates produced across the country.
Participants also stressed that the growing number of out-of-school children constitutes a national emergency requiring immediate intervention from the government and stakeholders in both the public and private sectors.
In his welcome address, the Provost of the College, Very Rev. Fr. Dr. Vincent Kayode Olofinkua, called for stronger collaboration between government and mission schools as a pathway to rebuilding quality education in Nigeria.
He noted that the nation’s education sector faces serious challenges that demand urgent collective action from all stakeholders. He described education as the foundation of national development, moral transformation, and social progress, stressing that no nation can rise above the quality of its educational system.
He also acknowledged the important role government schools continue to play in providing access to education for millions of Nigerians, adding that neither government nor mission schools can effectively address the challenges in isolation. I
n her presentation, Mrs. Folashade Adefisayo stressed the need for more proactive engagement by all stakeholders to save the education sector from further decay and safeguard the future of Nigerian children.
Prof. Oladapo, for his part, emphasized the need for advocacy-driven reforms, increased accountability, and stronger policy implementation to improve access to quality education across the country.
Prof. Anthony Okeregbe, Head of Philosophy at the University of Lagos, commended Catholic mission schools for producing quality graduates, enforcing discipline, and upholding respect for the dignity of the human person over the years. He urged government schools to take a leaf from these virtues in order to groom well-rounded students.
Participants were united in the opinion that while the government possesses the institutional capacity for policy formulation, regulation, and expanding access to education, mission schools bring moral discipline, community engagement, and long-standing traditions of academic excellence.
The symposium was moderated by a renowned Catholic scholar, Rev. Fr. Dr. Akinmayowa Akin-Otiko of the Institute of African and Diaspora Studies.