Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has revealed plans to commence the payment of the new minimum wage for civil servants in the state by the end of October. Governor Otti made the announcement during the 2024 World Teachers’ Day celebration, themed “Valuing Teachers’ Voices: Towards a New Social Contract for Education.”
Addressing the gathering, Otti emphasized his administration’s commitment to prioritizing education, which he described as one of the key pillars of his governance. He noted that the new minimum wage, set to be implemented alongside the existing N15,000 wage award, has been paid to civil servants over the past three months.
“Our administration understands the importance of education, which explains why we prioritize it as one of the major pillars of our governance objectives,” the Governor stated.
Otti also highlighted the reforms his administration has introduced to support teachers, including increasing the retirement age for educators to 65 years or 40 years of service, depending on their health and willingness to continue. Additionally, he pointed out that the state had eliminated salary discrimination between teachers and other civil servants, ensuring that primary and secondary school teachers are paid simultaneously with other state employees.
In a bid to further improve the education sector, Otti announced that his administration had re-trained 2,000 primary school teachers and plans to begin the retraining of secondary school teachers by November. He also revealed that 100 newly retrofitted public schools would be ready for use across the state by the end of the year. To ensure the safety of teachers and students, the Governor directed the Office of Homeland Security to provide adequate security for public schools.
Otti expressed his commitment to creating a conducive environment for teaching and learning, noting that the administration will address the student-teacher ratio and engage more teachers where necessary.
Earlier in the event, the state Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Goodluck Ubochi, congratulated the teachers and reaffirmed the government’s dedication to their welfare. He described teachers as “friends, role models, mentors, and character molders” who play a critical role in shaping the future.
Madu Chukwujekwu, the state chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), also lauded the government for recognizing the essential contributions of educators. He called for the empowerment of teachers to drive innovation and share their expertise to improve education outcomes in the state.
The event celebrated the vital contributions of teachers to society and reinforced the state government’s efforts to support and reform the education sector.
