As schools across Lagos State prepares to reopen for a new academic session, the Lagos State Government has stepped up capacity-building for its Quality Assurance officials to ensure effective monitoring and compliance with educational standards.
Over 350 evaluators from the Office of Education Quality Assurance (OEQA) are participating in a four-day training workshop flagged off in Lagos. Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Mr. Jamiu Alli-Balogun, stressed the need for professionalism in the discharge of their duties.
He urged the officers to be firm, objective and courteous in their dealings with school owners and administrators, describing them as partners who must be guided to conform to the state’s education standards. “Combine firmness with friendliness to sustain stakeholder confidence while keeping the interests of pupils and students paramount,” he told the evaluators.
Alli-Balogun described the OEQA as a critical arm of the state’s education sector responsible for ensuring that public and private schools operate within approved guidelines. He expressed confidence that with enhanced training and operational support, evaluators would be better positioned to detect gaps, enforce compliance and promote excellence across schools.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to raising the bar of education in Lagos State and assured parents and guardians that adequate measures are in place to guarantee a safe, conducive and quality-driven learning environment for children as the new session begins.
Also speaking, the Coordinating Director of OEQA, Mr. Remi Abdul, emphasised professionalism and integrity as key drivers of effective quality assurance operations. He said the theme of the workshop, “Strengthening Professionalism and Integrity for Effective Quality Assurance Operations,” was strategically chosen to underscore the importance of ethics in evaluation exercises.
According to Abdul, the training represents a vital platform for continuous capacity development and reflects OEQA’s commitment to excellence and improved educational standards across the state.
“Our responsibility goes beyond compliance checks. It is about modelling excellence, upholding standards and reinforcing the confidence of stakeholders in the Lagos State education system,” he said.
