The Free and Compulsory Education in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria: A Panacea for National Development

Abstract

This paper examined the impact of free and compulsory education in the development of Akwa Ibom State for the period 1997 to 2018. Data for the study were obtained from Federal Ministry of Education, National Bureau of Statistics, and UBE Digest. The study employed the ttest approach so as to compare both the enrollment and completion rates in the primary and secondary school levels between the period before the implementation of the programme (1997 -2008) and the period during which the programme is being implemented (2009 -2018). The result shows that both the enrollment and completion rates differs significantly between the period before the introduction of free and compulsory education and the period of the programme at the secondary school level. However, it was observed that the programme exerted no significant influence at the primary school level. It follows from the findings that the implementation of the free and compulsory education in the state is of great importance as it strives to eradicate illiteracy and prepare the future generations to greatness. The paper concludes that resources availability relates significantly with effective implementation and achievement of the goal of free and compulsory education in Akwa Ibom State. Thus, efforts geared towards adequate provision of educational resources should be made towards meeting the ever increasing enrollment rates in the school system.