The Anambra State Government has given all unapproved private schools in the state until September to regularize their status or face closure.
This warning was delivered by the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, during a stakeholder meeting with private school proprietors held on Friday in Awka.
Chuma-Udeh voiced her frustration over the continued operation of unaccredited schools, despite repeated warnings and an extended grace period. She explained that the purpose of the meeting was to understand the reasons behind the delay in obtaining necessary approvals.
“There are still many private schools yet to be approved. The deadline set by the governor has passed,” she said. “If these schools are not accredited by the start of the next academic term, they will be shut down, as mandated by law. We’ve given more than enough time.”
The commissioner added that she had received the governor’s consent to prolong the grace period and had held off enforcement by the task force, but school owners continued to delay compliance.
“Even after getting the governor’s approval to extend the deadline, and restraining the task force, the proprietors have still not acted,” she said.
During the meeting, some school owners complained about impostors posing as government officials and attempting to extort money from them. The commissioner responded by promising an investigation into the issue.
According to state authorities, over 2,000 unapproved private schools have been identified across Anambra’s 21 local government areas.