The Federal Government has honoured the Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, for his administration’s performance in the education sector.
Aiyedatiwa received the Special Recognition Award for Best Governor in Education at the 2026 World Teachers’ Day celebration held at Eagle Square, Abuja, on Monday.
The governor dedicated the award to teachers in Ondo State, acknowledging their contribution to the development of the state and the sacrifices they make in educating children.
In his acceptance speech, Aiyedatiwa expressed appreciation to the Federal Ministry of Education and its officials for the recognition, particularly the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of State for Education, Suwaiba Said Ahmad.
The governor, who revealed that he had previously worked as a teacher, said his experience in the profession had given him a deeper understanding of the responsibilities involved in educating young people.
He said education remained a major component of his administration’s seven-point OUR EASE development agenda, with emphasis on expanding access, improving quality and strengthening the teaching profession.
Aiyedatiwa disclosed that more than 2,100 teachers were recruited for public primary and secondary schools in 2025.
He added that teachers had also benefited from professional development programmes covering digital skills, teaching methods, climate-smart instruction and quality assurance.
According to him, the government constructed 43 classroom blocks at a cost of about N3.1bn in 2025 and completely renovated 75 schools across the state.
The governor said the state also procured 8,500 furniture units for pupils and 1,200 for teachers, in addition to textbooks, sporting equipment and other instructional materials.
He said educational resources worth over N150m were distributed across the three senatorial districts, while computer textbooks were supplied to public schools in all 18 local government areas.
Beyond primary and secondary education, Aiyedatiwa said his administration had approved the establishment of a College of Nursing at Igbokoda and a College of Education at Aboto.
On welfare, he said teachers’ salaries and allowances had been paid regularly, while the government continued to clear inherited gratuity arrears owed to retired public servants, including a significant number of former teachers.
“This is not merely a fulfilment of an obligation; it is a message to those still in service that government remembers their sacrifice and that their future is secure,” he said.
The governor further disclosed that N633.9m was spent in 2026 on the West African Examinations Council registration of 23,048 public school students, while the state also sponsored NABTEB examinations.
He said the government increased its bursary and scholarship allocation for tertiary students from N350m in 2025 to N400m in 2026, while OSOPADEC awarded N286.7m in bursaries to 4,837 students.
Aiyedatiwa also highlighted the state’s efforts to promote digital learning, citing its partnership with EIDU, which introduced AI-supported learning tools, smartphones and literacy programmes.
He said thousands of tablets had been deployed in public schools and that laptops were being provided to digitally trained teachers as part of preparations for emerging technologies, including robotics and artificial intelligence.
Speaking on the theme of the celebration, “Protecting and Advancing the Status of the Teaching Profession in a Rapidly Changing World,” the governor called for greater investment in teachers.
“If we truly desire a knowledge-driven society, we must give teachers the tools to teach, the environment to work, the dignity they deserve and the opportunity to continually renew their knowledge,” he said.
Aiyedatiwa said the award belonged to teachers who continued to serve pupils across the state, including those working in difficult and less visible environments.
He added, “When we educate a child, we do more than change one life. We strengthen a family, enlarge the possibilities of a community and increase the productive capacity of a State.”
The Minister of Education, Alausa, described teachers as critical to Nigeria’s future and called for continuous professional development as technology and artificial intelligence reshape the education sector.
The Minister of State for Education, Ahmad, said the Federal Government remained committed to improving teacher welfare, retention, professional development and working conditions.
She said teachers deserved good preparation, adequate materials, fair treatment, safety, career progression and respect.
The National President of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, Titus Amba, represented by his deputy, Kizito Kalu, also urged the government to translate the celebration of teachers into sustained investment in their welfare.
He said improving the quality of schools required corresponding improvements in the conditions under which teachers worked.