The Ekiti government says 203 public schools in the state will benefit from the World Bank‘s $25 million school improvement grant (SIG).

NAN reports that Taiwo Olatunbosun, the state commissioner for information, spoke of the grant on Saturday in Ado-Ekiti.

He said the fund is being utilised to construct new buildings, renovate old ones, and erect perimeter fencing.

Olatunbosun said part of the fund is also used to purchase equipment for the benefit of all students in the schools, including People Living With Disabilities (PLWDs).

“There is the Innovation Development and Effectiveness in the Acquisition of Skills Project, which is also back by the World Bank to enhance the capacity of the skills development system in order to produce relevant skills for the formal and informal sectors without leaving out PLWDs,” he said.

“In fact, there is no public school in the state that has not been substantially touched by government’s developmental efforts without bias to the enrollment of PLWDs.”

Olatunbosun said out of the fund, N546.9 million was used to pay for the senior school certificate examination (SSCE) for 16,269 students.

“Government also paid N546.9million WAEC/SSCE fees for 16,269 SS3 students in public schools for this year making all SS3 students in public schools beneficiaries, including people living with disabilities,” he added.

The commissioner also appealed to residents to support the efforts of the state government in making life more meaningful for all the PLWDs.

Murjanatu Zubairu, a young female student at the University of Abuja, has gone missing during her commute to school.

Her uncle, Alhaji Zubairu Jibrin Yewuti, a former vice chairman of the Kwali Area Council in the FCT, reported her disappearance over the phone on Sunday morning.

Murja, as she is known, is in her fourth year at the university, studying Arts Education within the Faculty of Education.

He stated that Murjanatu, who lived with her parents in Piwoyi, departed for school on Friday morning but hasn’t been reachable since then because her phone has been turned off.

As quoted by Daily Trust, he said, “It was her parents who called me to find out if Murjanatu came to my place, as efforts to reach her on the phone remained futile since she left home at Piwoyi on her way to school. I told them she didn’t come to my house. I also tried to reach her phone too but it was switched off.”

Zubairu, on the other hand, stated that the family had notified both the university administration and law enforcement about the student who had disappeared.

He urged the public to help by notifying the university or the nearest police station if they encounter her.

Meanwhile, the FCT Police Command is yet to release an official statement to confirm the incident.

The spokeswoman of the FCT Police Command, SP Adeh Josephine, in a reply to a text message sent to her phone, said, “I will find and then get back to you later.”

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has concluded plans to release the results of the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.

JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, is scheduled to hold a press briefing in Abuja on Monday regarding the release of the results and related matters, as indicated in a notice circulated to journalists in the capital city.

The notice was made available by the Board’s Head of Public Relations, Fabian Benjamin, on Sunday.

However, there are indications that results that would be released on Monday are for the candidates that participated in the UTME in the first few days, while others would be released after “due diligence” is completed.

The board earlier clarified that the decision to delay the release of the results for a few days was made to allow ample time for thorough scrutiny.

This measure, according to the examination body, was taken to guarantee the credibility and integrity of the results, ensuring there are no doubts or uncertainties, especially concerning issues such as impersonation, mixed biometrics, and other forms of malpractices.

In the past week, more than 1.9 million candidates enrolled for the 2024 UTME across over 700 Computer-Based Test centers nationwide.

The 2024 examination, which commenced on Friday, April 19, 2024, is expected to be concluded today.