The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has urged Public Relations Officers of State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs) across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to adopt innovative communication strategies to improve public awareness and visibility of government interventions in basic education.
The Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr Aisha Garba, gave the charge at the Commission’s 12th Annual Training Workshop for Public Relations and Information Officers held in Keffi, Nasarawa State.
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Dr Garba, who was represented by the Director of the North Central Zone, Mr Edward Ababalaka, described effective communication as essential to educational development.
She urged public relations officers to move beyond routine publicity by documenting achievements, countering misinformation, building public confidence and mobilising community support for basic education.
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Earlier, the Acting Head of Corporate Communications at UBEC, Mrs Kemi Abass, encouraged participants to embrace modern communication tools, including documentaries, human-interest stories, infographics and beneficiary testimonials, to showcase the impact of government interventions on teaching and learning.
She disclosed plans by the Commission to introduce a regular publicity bulletin, produce a documentary featuring success stories and launch a coordinated national digital campaign to increase public awareness of basic education programmes.
In his remarks, the Special Adviser to the Minister of Education on Media and Communications, Mr Ikharo Attah, called for timely and consistent publicity of Federal Government achievements, particularly improvements in school infrastructure and ongoing educational projects.
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Similarly, the National Forum Chairman of SUBEB Public Relations Officers, Mr Richard Nanpon Jonah, advocated dedicated budgetary allocations for public relations activities to enable officers to effectively communicate government interventions and their impact at the grassroots.
The workshop was formally declared open by the Chairman of the Nasarawa State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr Kassim Mohamed Kassim.