The Nigerian Economic Summit Group may have found the Opon Imo, the Osun’s Tablet of Knowledge a veritable learning tool whose content and framework need to be examined and propagated across the country.
The Group has invited the state to be part of its 20th summit to share the experience of its innovative e-learning device with people across the country.
The summit with the theme: “Transforming Education through Partnership for Global Competition,” holds from 18th to 20th March at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.
Opon Imo’s Project Manager, Mr. Bambo Bashorun, will lead the state’s delegation to the summit where he is expected to share his experience with other participants.
Other people invited as members of the panel, according to the NESG’s letter to Osun signed by its Director General, Mr. Frank Nweke, are the Managing Director of Galaxy Backbone Plc, Gerald Ilukwe; Country Director (Nigeria) of Microsoft, Mr. Kabelo Makwane; Country Manager, Google Nigeria, Ms. Juliet Ehimuan; Managing Director, Bharti Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya and Chief Executive Officer, ICX Solution, Mr. Khalifa Imama Galandaci among others.
Mr. Bashorun is expected to take the audience on a journey of how Opon Imo was conceived and transformed into reality as well as its impact on the state’s education sector in the last one year of its deployment.
According to the organizers, it is their belief that Mr. Bashorun’s “experience as the Head of Opon Imo would be invaluable at the 20th Nigerian Economic summit. We would like to hear how its deployment has improved learning outcomes in the State of Osun and what are the challenges facing the use of IT in the classroom.”
It will be recalled that Osun pioneered the e-learning, which was adjudged one of the first across the world, tablet last year to expose its students to information technology as it is being done in the developed countries of the world, where education has gone digital.
And since its debut in 2013, Opon Imo has won awards both at national and international levels as one of inventions of the 21st century contributed to humanity by the State of Osun.
Through initiatives such as Opon Imo, the Governor of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has won many laurels both within Nigeria and abroad.
These include, the ICT State of Year 2013 by the Nigerian Telecom Development; World Summit Award E-content initiative; Africa’s Most Innovative Telecom Product of the Year (Opon Imo), by the Nigerian Telecom Development; Governor of the Year on Social Responsibility Award; 2013 from the SERAs at its 7th Annual award;  the Award of Excellence for Pragmatic Leadership, Environmental Management and Youth Empowerment; Information Technology Brand of the Year from Brands in Nigeria Award and others.
The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) was established in 1996 to serve as a platform for public-private sector cooperation on Nigeria’s economic development.
It was an offshoot of the Nigerian Economic Summits (NES), which was introduced in 1993 by the Chief Ernest Shonekan-led Interim National Government.
Since then, the summit has an annual event. Mainly, the NESG concerns itself with how to foster open and continuous dialogues on Nigeria’s economic development.
Hence, its vision is to become, strategically, “The Nigeria’s leading private sector think-tank committed to the development of a modern globally competitive economy.”
Through this, it therefore, seeks to focus its activities on policy advocacy, research, communication and education.

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The primary objective of a good government is to impact positively on its citizenry through policies and programmes that would have direct bearing on their day-to-day living. Those great men and women that brought about a welfare society must have thought completely out of the box in favour of those within the society that are really struggling to make ends meet in  areas that are as basic but essential to human existence and dignity such as food, housing, health and education.
I was privileged a few weeks ago to experience a gathering of experts at the Parliament Building, United Kingdom where deliberations were centred on Home –Grown School Feeding for primary school children and challenges some nations are facing in putting food on the tables for these leaders of tomorrow most especially in Africa and some emerging economies globally. Eminently seated with these world renowned technocrats from  the World Bank, World Food Programme, African Union, Members of Parliament and other professionals around the globe was this familiar face in his usual “Dashiki” flowing white apparel, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola who to the surprise of his foreign audience, were jolted and shocked not only with the presentation but most importantly with the content, implementation and outcomes of his  government O’MEALS programme in far away rural setting of Osun State, Nigeria.
There and then, his was the good reference point by all the participants of what a welfare programme should be both in delivery and achievable set goals of alleviating hunger while supporting education, nutritional heath, economic development and empowerment at the local/ communities’ level.
Questions propping through my mind during and after the session were implicit and explicit tangible economic benefits in Osun State and why such opportunities are not being embraced by other states and the Federal Government of Nigeria?  If a state that easily fits as one of the poorest in terms of federal revenue allocation could boldly feed Two Hundred and Fifty Two Thousand, Seven Hundred and Ninety Three (252,793.) pupils on a daily basis (Monday to Friday) on nutritious menu that includes fish, egg, chicken, meat, juice/ fruits and carbohydrates (all locally produced, processed, delivered, prepared and consumed); what could that figure of beneficiaries be across the 36 states plus the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja?
As a guess estimate, Nigeria could have helped over Seven Million school children out of hunger and into healthy, happy learning future leaders. This to me is what a welfare-caring society should do.
Not only that, what about job creation and business opportunities this kind of O’MEALS provide that could also be replicated in the 37 states in my beloved country? Osun state, through this global laudable programme, has created Three Thousand and One Hundred (3,100.)  Professional Chefs (caterers); Four Hundred and Sixty Two (462) fish farmers; One Thousand (1,000) Pink cocoyam farmers all within the state economy. That  alone could have eliminated a total figure of close to Two hundred Thousand self employed people into Nigerian economy with a likely multiplier effect in sundries or allied trades and businesses. One has not added the 15,000 whole chicken and 35 heads of cattle per school week into this calculation.
When the history of a welfare state is finally written in the not –so- far future, the one name that will be written in gold is this same man who has transformed technology to a local, accessible and available companion of Osun state secondary school students through OPON IMO ipad-like Tablet of Knowledge). He is the same governor that is making school attendance an upward swing with a 24% increase in school enrolment within a period of less than a year; feeding primary school pupils with nutritious menu and making lives more abundant to those who could have remained peasant, poor and miserable without a gainful employment in his state. His name is Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.
Take politics out of it, I am of the candid opinion that Nigeria as a country, with her multiform complexities and challenges, has the responsibility to take adequate look at what is happening in that South West state of the country with a view to replicating some of them.
Last year, I read online from my base in the United Kingdom here Senator Uche Chukwumerije, a Peoples Democratic Party representative in the upper chamber of the National Assembly was in Osun and his recipe to Nigeria’s education’s quagmire was a replication of the new initiatives that are changing infrastructure and personnel of the education sector. These are said to be yielding bountiful results as indicated in the geometric rise in the better results now being recorded by school children in the public examinations.
Chukwumerije’s confession, to me, is the insight required by the PDP-led Federal Government to examine the Osun example towards solving many of the emergent problems bedevilling Nigeria and Nigerians.
I doubt if Nigeria’s Bureau of Statistics has any reliable figure on the number of deaths recorded in the last one month. But the avalanche of reports from home suggests Nigeria to look like a terribly war-torn zone where what happens in the next minutes tragically is anybody’s guess.
The gory killing of sleeping students in college hostels; the sacking of villages in Kaduna, Katsina, Plateau, Bauchi, Yobe to mention just a few put my country at its precipice. This orgy of violence stems, no doubt, from the failure of the system.
But it must be stated point-blank that where hunger, ignorance, injustice subsist for a long time, the fabric of the society is stretched beyond its capacity and the carnage being witnessed today is result of the snap of the social order.
My country needs a rethink; a new roadmap to first, halt this mess and move on to greater things that will ensure the happiness of our people. The picture of Osun that I see shows some potential for a greater Nigeria.
*Mr. Aderemi Idowu, a Housing and Management Consultant lives in London and writes through remidowu@yahoo.co.uk

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The Osun Movement for Peace (OMP), a non-governmental organisation, on Wednesday, March 12th , organised a symposium in Osogbo, tagged: “Osun education policy in perspective: Issues, challenges and imperatives”. The symposium was organised with the aim of examining the education policy in the state, to allow for a more informed and objective assessment.
Speaking on the Topic: ‘Understanding Aregbesola’s Education Reforms in the State of Osun’, the Vice Chairman, Osun Schools Reclassification Committee, Dr. Isiaka Ayodele Owoade said that the Osun education reforms have probably been the most discussed public policy in recent times.

According to him: “In terms of benefit, although it is early but we are already beginning to see some positive benefits that can be attributed to the reforms. One of such, is the students’ performance in WAEC which has improved by 43% between 2010 and 2013. Our objective is to reach 100% pass rate”.
Other benefits pointed out by Dr. Owoade are the reduction in students’ drop-out rate and the curbing of indiscipline among students. “When Chief Obafemi Awolowo introduced the Free Primary Education policy in 1955, some people opposed very strongly, but today we all thank God that the late sage did not revert the policy, and the policy has been applauded by posterity,” he stated.
Giving the keynote address, Mrs. Titilayo Laoye-Tomori, the Deputy Governor who also doubles as the state Commissioner for Education, spoke about the education policy implemented under the Aregbesola tenure, highlighting some of the benefits derived from them. “According to the National Bureau of Statistics December 2013, report, the State of Osun has the highest increase in public school enrollment in Nigeria” said Mrs Laoye-Tomori. She stated that the State of Osun has spent N900 million on the O’Uniform project, providing students with uniforms at subsidized rates.

“We now pay WAEC fees for all students in Grade 12, and have spent N400 million on WAEC fees for 32,035 students. School fees for students in University of Osun has been reduced from N198,000 to N100,000. Every student in law school is now entitled to N100,000. We were ashamed of what we met on ground, and are happy with the huge improvements we have made over the years,” said Laoye-Tomori.
While speaking on the topic ‘Media social responsibility and the non-partisan communication of government policies (with reference to the Osun State educational policy)’, Prof. Ayo Olukotun, Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences, Lead City University, Ibadan, said, “Journalists need to be wary of politicians who might want to use them to cause disaffection. That you have a good policy or programme does not mean it will be widely accepted. All sides should be allowed fair play for their ideas and policies to be tested,” he advised.
The scholar and Punch Newspapers columnist went on to highlight the major objectives of the Osun Education policy, which include: Overhauling school infrastructure, Standardising school uniforms, and deployment of innovative teaching materials and learning aides, among which is the award winning ‘Opon Imo’. In his closing remarks, Prof. Olukotun said “newspapers and the electronic media are free to take positions; what is crucial is that in doing so, they should be scrupulously fair and ensure that whatever position they take is based on verifiable facts”.
Present at this event were representatives of all major media platforms, heads of major governmental and non-governmental organisations, dignitaries from the Osun State Ministry of Education and other relevant stakeholders.
YNAIJA

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Osun State government has declared that it will simplify the process of obtaining Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for land owners.
The Commissioner for Lands, Physical Planning and Uban Development, Muiwa Ige, stated this to journalists in Osogbo.
He said the decision to simplify the process of obtaining Certificate of Occupancy by landowners was to aid development.
Ige said the state government is ready to issue C of O to would-be investors within one day as part of commitment to attract investment.
His words: “Unlike before, we are now making it easier for people to get certificate of occupancy for their land and the process is now being simplifies to the extent that we can even issue a C of O in one day especially if the land is meant for investment”.
Ige pointed out that the current administration in the state has succeeded in removing certain administrative bottlenecks that usually delay the issuance of C of O for years in the past and that the situation has changed in the state.
He noted that the government of Governor Rauf Aregbesola is running in an unusually manner and that this has compelled people working with the governor to think out of the box and explore unique initiatives that will better the lot of the people of the state.
He said the ongoing efforts of the state government to give the state capital a befitting look is already yielding appreciable result and that the new roads constructed including the ongoing ring road will boost commercial activities in the state.
He disclosed that the state government has paid compensation to owners of property affected by the massive road construction in the state while ship-owners were equally paid to assist them in relocating their businesses to new sites provided for them to do their business.
Ige added that the urban renewal programme of the Aregbesola’s administration designed to change the face of nine cities in the state simultaneously is attracting supports from the global community as the project which was planned in collaboration with the United Nations Habitat.
DAILY INDEPENDENT

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Osun State Government has concluded plan to organise maiden marathon race for public schools’ students as part of efforts to catch them young and put them in proper physical and emotional condition.
The Special Adviser to the governor on Youth, Sports and Special Needs, Hon. Biyi Odunlade expressed the commitment of the Aregbesola led administration to sports development
Odunlade who noted that Aregbesola’s administration has promoted sports and healthy living through programmes like the Monthly Walk To Live, adding that the marathon will provide avenue for the participants to showcase their talent.
He noted various innovations government has introduced to stimulate people’s interest in sporting activities and stressed the importance of regular body exercise for sound mind and body.
LEADERSHIP

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The Osun State Governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, has called for the amendment of the Nigerian Constitution to make job creation compulsory for government.
Aregbesola, who spoke at the Good Governance Forum organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission in Abuja on Thursday, decried the high level of unemployment and poverty in Nigeria. He advised that job creation should be included in the constitution to force every government in power to tackle poverty.
He said, “I would wish that the socio-economic development of the people be made a constitutional imperative. Their provision should not just be an inspirational reference in the constitution; they should be made compulsory and justifiable.
“That the government must provide job opportunities, education, health care services, public infrastructure and so on should be made compulsory in the constitution.”
This, he said, “Will not only put the leaders under the burden of good governance, it will also minimise corruption since there can never be enough money to deliver on all requirements.”
The governor also decried the spate of corruption in Nigeria which he said had made government to become meaningless to the people.
He said, “It is a widely acknowledged fact that corruption has become a national albatross that has made governments irrelevant to the existence of the people and, therefore, defeated the purpose of governance in the country.”
The governor, who also lamented that governments at all levels lacked the zeal to deliver on the dividends of democracy, tasked his colleagues to stop depending on the Federal Government for the development of their states.
He said over-dependency on federal allocation had contributed to corruption in Nigeria, stressing that his state had become an example of state that could be productive.
He stated that he was able to increase the monthly internal generated income of the state from N300m to N1.5bn through zeal and commitment.
According to him, “Many of our governments, at all levels, lack imagination and zeal. We all wait for the monthly federal allocation which in most cases is barely enough to pay salaries.
“Also, because the federation account allocation is more of an unearned rent, it is spent as freebies and this is one of the impetuses of corruption.”
Earlier the Chairman of ICPC, Mr. Ekpo Nta, described the ICPC Good Governance Forum which started in 2008 as a platform for top government officials, especially governors, to share their governance experiences that have reduced corruption-prone processes, reduced poverty and promoted accountability in managing the public resources entrusted to their care.
“The choice of good governance as a name for this forum is, therefore, a deliberate attempt to encourage governments to contribute their quota actively in the fight against corruption,” he said.
THE PUNCH

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The Commissioner  for Agriculture and Food Security, State of Osun ,Hon. Wale Adedoyin has commended Governor Rauf Aregbesola on his various agricultural programmes aimed at providing food in the state.
He gave the commendation in Osogbo during a stake holders meeting with the committee on enumeration of cocoa trees which is expected to commence on the 18th of this month across the state.
The commissioner stated that the enumeration exercise of cocoa trees became necessary so as to replace the old unproductive trees with new ones with a view to maintaining the massive production of cocoa.
Hon. Adedoyin then called for absolute commitment from the stakeholders in the cocoa production and give necessary support to the enumeration exercise so as to achieve the goal.
Responding on behalf of  stakeholders, the Patron of All Farmers Association of Nigeria  (AFAN) Osun Chapter, Chief Bola Otunla thanked the state government for supporting agriculture in all ramifications while promising that all hands will be on deck for a successful enumeration exercise.
Present at the meeting were the permanent secretary,Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security,Mr.Sunday Odediran, AFAN Secretary ,Hon. Ibrahim Oyewale, Directors in the ministry and other important dignitaries
OSUN NEWS

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He said that the government decided to complete the project to boost the supply of pipe-borne water to the people of the state. He said the rehabilitation of the water works would be completed within the next four months. The general manager said that N424 million was spent in the first phase of the rehabilitation.
Awojuyigbe said that 12 local government areas would be supplied with pipe borne water at the end of the rehabilitation.
“The incumbent administration in Osun is committed to the supply of potable water to every nook and crannies of the state,” he said.
(NAN)

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