Calabar – Bishop Emmah Isong, the Proprietor, Seven Angels University Secondary School, Calabar, has called for the removal of obstacles to the registration of private schools in the country.
Isong made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar on Sunday.
He said that the bureaucratic bottlenecks being experienced in the registration of private schools was a drawback for the education sector.
He said that the country needed a more organised education sector for it to become one of the best economies in the world.
The proprietor said urged the Federal Government to allow the education sector to be driven by the private sector with it playing a regulatory role.
“Government should hands-off running schools and provide the enabling environment for more private sector participation in order for the sector to thrive.
“Educational policies should be private sector-friendly.[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
“Government should make laws that will remove the bottlenecks in registering private schools, especially for the churches.
“That civil service mentality seen in the process of registering schools should be removed. Government should make way to encourage competition.”
The cleric described education as a catalyst for development and self-reliance.
Isong stressed the need for government to encourage missionaries to establish more schools in the country, saying that it would engender economic growth.
“Government should give more encouragement to churches to set up schools. Missionary schools provide the best environment for teaching and learning,’’ he said.
Isong, who is the General Overseer of Christian Central Chapel International, Calabar, also called for the introduction of mandatory entrepreneurial skills education in secondary schools nationwide.
He said with such scheme in place, school leavers could become employed and self-reliant. (NAN)