Districts will have Fode centres

By BERRY DINGHAN
Education Department deputy secretary for schools and education standards Walipe Wingi says the flexible, open and distance Education (FODE) will establish centres in all 89 districts in the country to absorb school leavers and drop outs.
Wingi said the approach was in line with the government’s policy of leaving no students behind and this would be in part facilitated by establishing Fode centres at district level to accommodate the significant numbers of students who did not continue with their formal education.
He said under the direction of Government, Fode had been given special attention to further decentralise its system of function to district level, where the majority of the population was based in order to provide opportunities for education.
He condemned reports of Fode being inconvenient and not functioning well in provinces as untrue.
Fode was the only government-sanctioned education system which helped give drop outs and school leavers a second chances to complete their education.
“If a student who dreamed all along to be an engineer one day but failed to make it to the university because of low marks in some subjects, than Fode allows you to upgrade your marks and then reapply to the university.”
Wingi said Fode was functioning effectively and currently they were working on strengthening its capacities and would eventually establish a Fode university as it was already under the plan and students could continue straight from Fode centres to university.
“People who came out from Fode are currently contributing effectively to the country,” he said.
“Like myself, I am product of Fode, as is Education Minister Joseph Yopyyopy, Correctional Services Minister Chris Nangoi, former education secretary Peter Baki, former director of National Research Institute Dr Thomas Webster to name the few.”
Wingi advised all provincial Fode centres to not to turn students away as it was official government policy to leave no students out as educating all citizens was important.
He called on churches and the corporate sector to create pathways to help through education.