President Bola Tinubu has expressed profound joy at the successful rescue of the children and teachers from Oriire community in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, by the security forces. 

  Tinubu praised the heroic efforts of the security agencies, especially the military, the Department  for State Service(DSS) and the Police, for working round the clock in the last 56 days to secure the release of the abducted children and their teachers without any collateral damage and for arresting eight of the abductors and neutralising others.

Spokesman to the President, Bayo Onanuga in a statement said  Tinubu regretted the anguish that the children and their teachers, as well as members of their families and the entire nation, have experienced since the sad occurrence.

For cooperating with the Federal Government in all rescue efforts, President Tinubu commended the Oyo State Government and charged it to ensure adequate security around schools across the state. 

“I am profoundly happy that our security forces successfully rescued the abducted pupils and teachers from Orire, Ogbomoso in Oyo State today after a military, police and intelligence-driven operation that neutralised some of the terrorists that perpetrated the evil act and the arrest of eight of them. 

“This successful military operation has ended the siege and standoff of over 50 days and has brought relief to the entire nation and the affected families in particular. On behalf of the country, I express my gratitude to the officers and men of our armed forces, the intelligence agencies and the police for the safe rescue of the children and their teachers. 

“My government will get justice for these children and their teachers and for the family of Mr Oyedokun, who the terrorists gruesomely murdered. 

“I must commend the government of Oyo State for working cooperatively with us in bringing this unfortunate incident to a successful end,” the President said. 

President Tinubu has also directed that the emergency agencies work with the Oyo State Government to provide all necessary medical and relief support to the children and the teachers. 

The Federal Ministry of Education said it will officially unveil the Digital National Education Management Information System (DNEMIS) on July 1 to strengthen education planning, governance and service delivery through reliable data.

National Project Coordinator, Special Programmes Operations and Implementation Unit (SPOIU), Office of the Minister of Education, Adebayo Onigbanjo made this known on Monday at a news conference in Abuja ahead of the unveiling.

Onigbanjo said the initiative was a key component of the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI), being implemented under the leadership of the Minister of Education, Dr.

He said the ministry had prioritised education data as a strategic national asset to improve governance, accountability and evidence-based decision-making.

“For many years, education planning and administration relied on fragmented systems, inconsistent reporting processes and limited access to reliable and timely data.

“These challenges constrained effective planning, weakened accountability and limited the sector’s ability to respond to emerging realities,” he said.

He explained that the ministry developed the Nigeria Education Data Infrastructure (NEDI) to coordinate, standardise and strengthen education data management across all levels of education.

According to him, DNEMIS is a flagship component of NEDI, designed to provide timely, reliable and accessible information to support planning, policymaking, budgeting, monitoring and service delivery.

He added that the platform would ensure every learner, school, teacher and education investment was captured in a system that supports evidence-based decision-making.

“The progress recorded through NEDI and the implementation of DNEMIS reflects the ministry’s broader commitment to ensuring that reforms are not only announced but effectively coordinated, implemented and measured.

“Data is no longer a back-office function. It is becoming the engine of education reform in Nigeria,” Onigbanjo said.

Also speaking, the Special Assistant to the Minister on Digital Communications and E-Learning, Ms Mojoyin Adebajo, said DNEMIS marked a major milestone in Nigeria’s digital education transformation.

Adebajo said the platform would digitise the Annual School Census process and provide government with timely information to support planning, budgeting, policymaking and improved service delivery.

She explained that the portal would, for the first time, make selected official education data publicly accessible through an interactive platform.

According to her, the portal would enable government institutions, researchers, development partners, civil society organisations, the private sector, journalists and members of the public to access and engage with education information.

“This represents an important step towards expanding access to information and encouraging broader participation in conversations that shape the future of education in Nigeria,” she said.

She added that the ministry remained committed to leveraging technology and innovation to strengthen education governance and improve learning outcomes across the country.

The NEDI Coordinator, Abubakar Isah, said the ministry had taken adequate measures to ensure compliance with Nigeria’s data protection laws and safeguard education data.

Also, Saka Ibraheem, Education Specialist, Planning, Monitoring, Data and Research at UNICEF, said the goal was to integrate all education management platforms into a single system.

“Before next year, we hope to have the Education Management Information System (EMIS), Teacher Management Information System (TMIS) and individual learner records in one system.

“One system for education and one system for Nigeria,” he said.

He added that the integrated system would have a unique identifier to track school enrolment and out-of-school children across the country.

According to him, the system would help reduce school dropouts by enabling seamless tracking of learners as they move through the education system.

Katsina State Gov, Dikko Radda has extended the offer of automatic employment to indigenes of the state who graduate with first-class degrees from higher institutions across the country.

Radda announced this on Sunday during the grand finale and award presentation of the maiden Katsina State Students’ Week held at Bayero University, Kano (BUK).

The governor said the initiative was designed to attract the brightest minds into the state civil service and strengthen its capacity for effective service delivery.

“When I assumed office, I introduced automatic employment for students who graduated with first-class degrees.

“Today, I am pleased to expand the offer to all Katsina State students across the country who graduate with first-class degrees from this year onward.

“This decision is deliberate. If we recruit a significant number of first-class graduates into the civil service, Katsina State will have one of the most efficient and productive civil services in the country within the next 10 to 15 years.

“You will have a civil service that can compete favourably with any state in the federation and even rival those at the federal level because we are bringing highly talented individuals into the service,” he said.

He also explained that his administration had prioritised the settlement of outstanding scholarship obligations and increased bursary allowances to encourage students to remain in school and pursue their academic aspirations.

According to him, the government has significantly reduced the number of out-of-school children in the state and prevented many from drifting into social vices.

The governor said education remained a top priority for his administration, which had consistently allocated a substantial share of the state budget to the sector.

He said that the government had recruited more than 10,000 teachers, constructed new schools and rehabilitated educational infrastructure across the state.

He urged students to continue striving for excellence and to contribute meaningfully to the development of Katsina State.

He added that the outstanding performance of Katsina students had made him proud to be both a son and governor of the state.

The Vice-Chancellor of BUK, Prof. Haruna Musa-Muhammad, described Radda as a student-friendly governor.

Musa-Muhammad commended the upward review of the state scholarship scheme and expressed the institution’s readiness to partner with the Katsina State Government in advancing educational development.

The convener of the event and Special Assistant to the Governor on Student Matters, Muhammad Nagaske, said the Students’ Week was organised to foster collaboration, promote academic excellence, encourage cultural exchange and discover talents among students from various institutions.

The event brought together Katsina students from higher institutions in Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Borno and other states.

Participants who excelled in the week-long activities, including sports, academic competitions and cultural displays, received various prizes.