An Israeli researcher, Dr. Joseph
Shevel said low investment in education by Nigerian politicians is
attributed to the fact that the sector takes a long time to mature and getting
returns requires patience.
In a keynote address he delivered at
the third international conference organized by the Faculty of Social Sciences
of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Shevel, who is the President of Galilee
Institute, Israel and a member of Israeli Prime Minister’s committee on Social
Policy, described education as the future for any nation because of its ripple
effect on all sectors of human endeavour.
According to him, to be on the right
path for development, a country’s budget for education must meet the basic
international standard in line with the Dakar Recommendation. He expressed
regret that while the recommendation was that budget for education must not be
less than 5% of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Nigeria’s budget for
education has been hovering around 1.5%.
Shevel said the economic crisis
facing Nigeria is an opportunity to go back to the basics, noting that the
country’s problem is an interim situation that could be overcome with hard work
and determination.
He said there was no reason for
Nigeria to be among the world’s poorest nations going by the enormous resources
she is endowed with.
“The rivers in Nigeria are enough
for the country to have enough fish and for export. The land resources are
enough to grow crops that can feed the whole of Africa. What is required is the
will to do what is necessary,” Shevel said. [infostride]
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