UBEC Backs Delta’s Tech-Driven Teacher Tracking Model As Aisha Garba says Attend360 can strengthen teacher accountability nationwide By Beauty Akporido Aroh
The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has identified Delta State’s technology-driven teacher attendance system, Attend360, as a model capable of strengthening teacher accountability and improving learning outcomes across Nigeria.
UBEC Executive Secretary, Aisha Garba, made the observation during a courtesy visit to the Delta State Government, represented by Deputy Governor Sir Monday Onyeme, as part of activities marking the 30th Quarterly Meeting of UBEC Management with Executive Chairmen of State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs) in Asaba.
Garba said the decision to host the meeting in Delta was informed by the state’s progress in basic education, particularly its deployment of technology to monitor teacher attendance, improve school management and promote accountability.
She stressed that the presence and commitment of qualified teachers remain fundamental to achieving meaningful learning outcomes.
> “There is no education or quality learning without a good teacher or without a teacher in the classroom. You can build as many schools as you want, but as long as there is no teacher, and a good teacher, in the classroom, learning will not take place,” Garba said.
According to her, Attend360 demonstrates how technology can be deployed to address teacher absenteeism and ensure that investments in infrastructure are matched by effective teaching and learning.
The UBEC boss also commended Delta for accessing its Universal Basic Education (UBE) matching grants up to 2025, describing the state as one of those making significant progress in basic education.
She, however, called for more effective utilisation of available education funds, urging the state to ensure that approved programmes are implemented promptly and that financial investments translate into improved facilities, teaching quality and measurable learning outcomes.
Garba further encouraged Delta to position itself to benefit from the education component of the HOPE Education Programme, a World Bank-supported intervention with up to $500 million earmarked for education.
She explained that states seeking to participate would need to access the 2026 matching grant and implement at least 50 per cent of their 2025 Action Plan.
Responding, Deputy Governor Onyeme assured UBEC that Delta would continue to strengthen its education sector and expand access to quality education.
Onyeme clarified that the state currently had approximately ₦1 billion in unutilised education funds, rather than the ₦8 billion earlier referenced, while disclosing that Delta had implemented about 90 per cent of its 2025 Action Plan and had already received its 2026 matching grant.
> “We will continue to improve and do our best to ensure that we give education to as many citizens as possible,” he said.
The UBEC delegation also visited the Asagba of Asaba, HRM Prof. Epiphany Azinge, where Garba called for greater involvement of traditional institutions in advancing Nigeria’s basic education agenda.
She said UBEC remained committed to ensuring that every Nigerian child, irrespective of location, socio-economic background or personal circumstances, has access to quality basic education.
Azinge, in his remarks, described basic education as the foundation upon which the nation’s future is built, stressing that the quality of teachers at the primary level would ultimately determine the quality of citizens produced by the education system.
> “If you have quality teachers, you produce quality people,” the monarch said.
He urged UBEC and SUBEB chairmen to confront the challenges confronting basic education with honesty and develop practical solutions that would ensure that no child is excluded.
He specifically called for greater attention to children with disabilities and those from disadvantaged backgrounds, insisting that every Nigerian child deserves access to basic education.
The engagements in Asaba underscored the growing emphasis on technology, accountability and effective resource utilisation in Nigeria’s basic education sector.
For UBEC, the Delta experience provides an opportunity for other states to examine how technology such as Attend360 can complement government investment, strengthen teacher accountability and ultimately ensure that resources committed to education produce tangible improvements in classrooms.
Garba said UBEC would continue to work with state governments, SUBEBs, traditional institutions and other stakeholders to provide the technical support and collaboration required to reposition basic education and give every Nigerian child a stronger foundation for the future.
