THE Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and Delta State Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, are organising a two-day workshop on professional development for educators.

Over 200 teachers, drawn from primary and secondary schools in the state,  yesterday converged at the Our Lady High School, Effurun, Delta State for the event.

The programme is aimed at  professionalising the education sector of the country and providing teachers  with the necessary skills and professional abilities to help them become effective on their job.

Elder Godsday Orubebe, Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, while declaring the workshop open, said the idea to train teachers in the Niger Delta region was borne out of the desire by President Goodluck Jonathan to professionalise the education sector.

Represented by Mrs Augustina Ediae, Director Community Relation and Youth Development in the Ministry, said  "the idea to train the trainers is to build their proficiency in the teaching profession and to ensure that teachers in the rural areas of the Niger Delta are well equipped to  inform their students and pupils."

Mrs. Elo Aghogho Olalekan, a Canadian-based educationist and programme initiator,  said that the programme was initiated and keyed into by the Ministry Niger Delta Affair because Nigerian students, who seek admission in Canada were often forced to take English proficiency test after acquiring the necessary qualification for their choice course.

She lamented that the declining state of education in the country has brought about the need to train the trainer, so that they can impact quality knowledge on the students.

Earlier, former Commissioner for Education, Dr Veronica Ogbuagu, who facilitated the programme, said that the workshop for teachers was to ensure that pupils and students across the country have first-rate education.

She said that in a developing country like Nigeria, "we should not be satisfied with the present system of education, because education is closely related with the development
of the society."

Ogbuagu added that "there should be re-examination of the system, and define steps be taken to overhaul it,  if the education sector is to achieve the national objectives as stated in the National Policy on Education, as well-trained, qualified, efficient, satisfied and dedicated breed of teachers is absolutely essential."