Benue State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB, is to benefit from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) STEM Model School Project Construction. The Executive Chairman of SUBEB, Dr. Grace Adagba, Thursday at the Board’s Headquarters received the advance team from JICA ahead of a survey mission for grant aid in education for constructing a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) facility in the state. This was contained in a press release by the Board’s Information Officer, Emmanuella Akese.
The release states that the visit of the advance team from JICA was a critical step in the preparations for JICA’s grant aid support under its Effective School Programme (ESP), whose aim is to establish a model science facility at the basic education level in Benue State. Dr. Adagba, who welcomed the team, acknowledged JICA for selecting Benue as a beneficiary of the ESP, which she noted would be a transformative opportunity for young learners in the state.
“We are grateful for this support, and we are confident that the establishment of a STEM model school will help nurture the talents of our learners and inspire many of them to pursue careers in science and technology,” she said.
She assured the team of the full support and commitment of Governor Hyacinth Alia in ensuring the success of the project, adding that the Governor has consistently demonstrated unwavering dedication to the development of basic education in the state.
According to the release, JICA’s Basic Education Advisor, working with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr. Kusakabe Hikaru, in his remarks, explained that the purpose of the visit was to ensure that all necessary preparations and data-gathering processes are completed ahead of the official survey mission from JICA Headquarters, Tokyo.
Programme Coordinator for Education at JICA, Mr. Stephen Nwanya, stressed that the team’s visit is to finalize infrastructure design plans for the proposed Model Science School, which will cater for both Primary and Junior Secondary School learners. He disclosed that JICA remains committed to supporting the Board and meeting some of its key demands for the successful implementation of the initiative. “We are truly impressed by the commitment and progress we have seen here in Benue. The efforts of the Executive Chairman are commendable and reflect the sustainability potential of the project,” he maintained.
Earlier, the JICA team visited St. Theresa’s Primary and UBE JSS Makurdi, one of the Effective School Programme (ESP) schools in the state, to conduct a preliminary survey and gather data relevant to the upcoming intervention. The JICA Headquarters mission is expected in Benue State in September 2025 to conduct further evaluations as part of the grant approval process
