The Kano State Government has released the sum of N1.2 billion to augment the payment of workers salary in the 44 Local Government Areas of the state.
Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje explained that the fund was sourced from the state’s internal earnings, adding that the release was as a result of the decline monthly Federation allocation to the Local Government Areas.
Speaking during the Ramadan Iftar held with management of tertiary educational institutions in the state, he said that the only option left for state governments is to look inward in face of the current economic realities in the country.
He recalled that during the immediate past administration, the state government had a balance of N4 – N5 billion after paying monthly salary but added that today, the story is different with the dwindling capital receipts from the Federation Account.
He said that the Single Treasury Account is indispensable for the effective coordination of the internal earnings and expenditure even though he admitted the new model would affect tertiary institutions in the state.
“Whenever you collect your revenues, declare them. We will then release the money to you for your day to day activities”, the governor assured them.
Governor Ganduje explained that although he inherited problems in the tertiary education sector, prominent among which is the issue of accreditation of courses, he added that the government would do its best to support the institutions to live up to their mandates.
He also disclosed that the state’s Education Promotion Committees was inaugurated to encourage community participation in the education sector, pointing that N10 million had been released to each local government committee to facilitate the renovation of primary schools in their area.
“We shall evaluate the performance of the local government committees and make more money available to deserving committees as part of our efforts to revitalize education in the state”, he added.