Professor Suleiman Bogoro (Former Executive Secretary of TETFund):
Oratory on Professor Ruqayyatu Ahmed Rufa’i OON
The Chairman of Board of Trustees of Hallmarks of Labour Foundation, HE Emeka Ayaoku, Special Guest of Honour, HE the Governor of Lagos State, the Executive Secretary and members of the HLF BOT, past and incoming Awardees of the HLF Role Model Award, very distinguished invited guests, ladies and gentlemen, it is my privilege to unveil the abridged Citation of Prof. Rugayatu Ahmed Rufai, former Minister of Education of Nigeria, a high pace-setter extra-ordinary, and exceptional role model among women in academia and our society where cultural and religious morals define personalities in public space and in the family.
Prof Ruqayatu Ahmed Rufai for HLF-ROLE MODEL AWARD OF EXCELLENCE IN CONSISTENT ADVOCACY FOR GIRL CHILD EDUCATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF THE ALMAJIRI SCHOOL SYSTEM. She is a Professor of the Bayero University Kano and she obtained her Master’s and Ph.D. degrees from West Virginia University in USA in History and Curriculum studies.
She was Commissioner of Education, Science and Technology, Jigawa State and later became the first Northern Nigeria Female Minster of Education wherein (under President Goodluck Jonathan) she reformed TETfund to its original mandate of intervention provision of critical infrastructure and human resource capacity building in public tertiary institutions, during same period that she initiated and started the transformation of the Almajiri school system with massive provision of funding and infrastructure as well as same for special boy child education intervention in mainly South East Zone in particular. Yet by her firm policy of aggressive promotion of Girl Child Education especially in Northern states, like no other person previously, she had challenged the outdated notion that female children do not need to go to school.
Although her bold policy did not endear her to certain entrenched interests who would not support women liberation through education, she was resolute in implementation. She was once elected Chairperson, Conference of Education Ministers of African Union (COMEDAF).
She is a holder of National Honor of Officer of the Order of The Niger, OON, Dubai Global Excellence Award, Commendation by Howard University Washington DC, Chevening Fellow at the University of London, among others. Finally, She is an exceptional role model for her exemplary fidelity to family values as demonstrated by the principled and personal presence and support of her husband, Ahmed Rufai, at all times, including this Award ceremony. On this note, I am pleased to present Prof Rugayatu Ahmed Rufai for her investiture as HLF ROLE MODEL AWARD OF EXCELLENCE IN CONSISTENT ADVOCACY FOR GIRL CHILD EDUCATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF THE ALMAJIRI SCHOOL SYSTEM.