Re-Crafting the Nigerian Universal Basic Education Sector for a Competitive Advancement in the 21st Century

Abstract

The universal basic education programme was designed and lunched in Nigeria in September 1999 by the civilian administration of Olushegun Aremu Obasanjo, with the aim of eradicating totally, illiteracy and equipping its recipients with the requisite skills, attitudes, norms, as well as providing an all-round educational opportunity for all, as this will not only assist the individual to be useful to himself, but also contribute meaningfully to the sustainability of social, political, economic and educational development of the Nigerian society. Thus, this paper is predicate on the need to re-crafting the Universal Basic Educational programme (UBE), so as to avert it from failing as that of Universal Primary Education of 1976 did, which was evident on poor funding, inadequate facilities, inadequate staffs or lack of manpower, as well as poor personnel motivation. Etc. hence, the paper seeks to proffer strategies on how to re-craft the UBE programme for a more advanced and competitiveness amongst comity of nation. Thus, the paper examined the background/origin of the UBE programme, objectives of the universal education programme, problems confronting the UBE programme as well as its implications. The paper concluded by admonishing the federal government with the strategies needed for a successful implementation of the UBE programme in Nigeria while also recommending that the Nigerian society should do away with both the British and American system of education, to adopt that of a practical and technologically inclined system of education like China, Japan and other industrialized nations of the world.