The challenges of rural schools and communities in achieving quality/standard education for all is largely dependent on the conditions available for learning, in this case, access to adequate facilities, learning aid and infrastructure plays a major role in achieving a quality education.

The lack of these educational aid has overtime been seen to have influenced the way in which children in these marginalized communities have fared in learning outcomes, same as their teachers who are also affected. In ensuring we continuously empower marginalized communities to hold their government accountable through providing information that will facilitate the tracking and monitoring of projects, the FTM team during its data mining process gathered that Adavi Local Government Council of Kogi State had tendered to renovate 2 blocks Of classrooms In LGEA at Zango-Daji community.

To ensure accountability and transparency in governance and to encourage citizens participation in budget assessment and implementation, Follow the Money team has initiated #RenovateZangoDaji to track the school project.

We call on all relevant stakeholders especially the Adavi Local Government Council of Kogi State to provide all necessary information for the successful monitoring and timely implementation of this project.  

For more Information about this campaign, please log on to www.ifollowthemoney.org

Media Reports on the Town Hall Meeting

08 March 2018: There were various media reports on the town hall meeting including; 

http://www.thenigerianpost.com.ng/follow-the-money-initiative-takes-campaign-to-zango-daji-community/

5 Man Committee Set Up to Follow Up with the Project

08 March 2018: A major highlight of the town hall meeting was that stakeholders in attendance agreed that a five (5) man committee be set up from the community to visit SUBEB to demand the renovation of the classroom be stopped and the building be demolished and a new one be erected.

Community Commits to Setting up School Based Monitoring Committee (SBMC)

08 March 2017: Following a series of deep discussions from the Town Hall meeting, the Community committed to setting up their own SBMC to engage SUBEB and other relevant government agencies that concerns education for the monitoring of the quality of educational construction and the quality of education dispensed to their children and wards.

LGA Public Relations Officer Makes Promises to Act on the Project 

9 March 2018: The Public Relation Officer of Adavi Local Government Education Authority – appreciated Follow the Money on the good job they are doing on behalf of the Executive Secretary. He expressed worry that public buildings, especially that of public schools are poorly built and this are classrooms for their children. He recalled attending Primary school from 1969 to 1976 and the classrooms he met at his primary school are still standing in the school. The PRO promised to take back all necessary information from the town hall to the Executive Secretary.

Formal Community Leader Says Renovation Project is an Accident to Happen

Dilapidated School Structure

9 March 2018: The former community leader supervising the ongoing building project in the school (GYB Model School) described the classrooms as an accident waiting to happen. He stressed that the classroom being renovated is damaged beyond renovation and it will be an effort in futility continuing with it because, in less than a year, the building will go bad. He requested that the building is brought down and rebuilt afresh.

Community Claimed They Needed a New Building and Not Renovation of Old Ones

Ongoing Renovation Work

9 March 2018: During the town-hall meeting, the community stated that the school does not require a renovation but a new and stronger building with better quality. Stating vigorously that the building has to be pulled down completely and a new one erected under a strict supervision by the community.

Local Government Representative Refused To Attend The Town Hall Meeting

8 March 2018: The Director of Works for the Local Government assigned by the LG Administrator to attend the town-hall meeting failed to show up despite series of engagement and efforts made by the team to reach him.

Follow the Money Held Town Hall Meeting With Relevant Stakeholders 

Busayo Morakinyo, FTM programme manager introducing Follow The Money during the town hall

8 March 2018: The Follow The Money Team convened all relevant stakeholders and the community members for a town hall meeting at Zango Daji Primary School, to discuss issues and challenges surrounding the project and to liaise with relevant stakeholders on way forward.

Please find the report here.

Local Government Administrator Gives Full Project Details  

8 March 2018: The administrator further stated that FTM team were misinformed about the project and that construction of two classrooms is currently on-going at the school, which is the GYB Model School earlier reported during the preliminary visit to the school and that the renovation of the other two is yet to commence because of lack of funds. A call from the community to the team on this same day highlighted that it’s just construction for one classroom as against the two classrooms earlier stated by the LG  Administrator.

Local Government Administrator Directed Follow the Money to Redirect the Sent FOI 

8 March 2018: The FTM team visited the Adavi Local Government administrator to follow-up on the FOI request sent to the Local Government on project specifics. The Administrator stated that the local government did not tender for the projects but the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs did on-behalf of the Local Government and as such the FOI should be addressed appropriately.

Women Leader Discussed The Community Effort to Get Their Children to School

26 February 2018: In an interview with the community, the women leader mentioned the effort of the community in advocating for the construction of a standard building that will enable their wards to learn in a more befitting environment. They wrote to Kogi SUBEB and representatives came and assessed the school and since then nothing has been done. According to the women leader, her late husband used to move tables and chairs from a school in another community to kick-start LGEA school in their community using his vehicle.

Community Leader Expressed Interest in the Bill of Quantities 

26 February 2018: The community leader asked the team to assist the community with identifying the contractor and getting the bill of quantities to enable effective tracking of the project.

Community Leader Not Aware of Project 

26 February 2018: During the community outreach, the community leader expressed fear that the job may not be done or better still completed according to the specification as previous constructions done in the school had collapsed in time past. He also lamented that they are not aware of the project nor carried along in the project.

Follow the Money Team Went for Community Outreach 

26 February 2018: FTM Team, Kogi Chapter set out for a community outreach to Zango Daji Community to collect baseline data and gather information that will facilitate tracking the renovation of two classrooms and construction of another two in the LGEA primary school.

Report here.

Freedom of Information Request Sent To The Local Government Secretariat

07th February 2017: The FTM team in Kogi State submitted a FOI letter, requesting for specific amount and bills of quantities for the renovation of the school. Find it here

Low Turnout of Student in The School 

07th February 2018: According to the principal who was interviewed during a preliminary visit to the school, the school has 150 students with 55 female and 95 male Students. However, due to the poor facilities students have stopped going to school as less than 30 students were seen in the school during the visit.

School Principal Not Aware of Project

07th February 2018: In an interview with the principal of the school, he said they were not aware of the Local Government’s plan to renovate or build more classrooms in the school. He also stated that he had written to the State Universal Basic Education (SUBEB) about the state of the classrooms in the School.