The Oyo State Government has expressed readiness to partner with the Universal Basic Education Commission and United States-based Think Equal Organisation on a new initiative aimed at strengthening foundational education across the state.

The partnership will focus on integrating Social and Emotional Learning into pre-primary and primary education to complement conventional literacy teaching.

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The Executive Chairman of the Oyo State Universal Basic Education Board, Nureni Adeniran, disclosed this on Thursday, September 3, 2026, when he received representatives of Think Equal and UBEC during a sensitisation and engagement visit to the board’s headquarters in Ibadan.

A statement issued by Adeniran and made available to journalists on Friday said the initiative was tagged the “Think Equal Pre-Primary and Primary Literacy Programme: A Social and Emotional Learning Initiative”.

According to the chairman, the programme is designed to equip children with skills including empathy, emotional intelligence, self-regulation and positive social interaction alongside their academic development.

Adeniran said Oyo SUBEB had already undertaken several interventions aimed at strengthening early childhood education, including the training of 320 Early Childhood Care, Development and Education teachers across the state’s 33 Local Government Universal Basic Education Authorities.

He attributed the progress recorded in the education sector to the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde, citing sustained investment in basic education, school infrastructure and learner-friendly facilities.

The chairman also highlighted the government’s focus on teachers’ welfare, continuous professional development and prudent deployment of UBEC and SUBEB intervention funds.

Adeniran assured the visiting officials that Oyo SUBEB would carefully review the implementation framework for the new programme.

He said the review would cover teacher professional development, classroom resources, monitoring and evaluation, as well as the integration of the initiative into the state’s existing curriculum and school system.

The chairman thanked Think Equal and UBEC for selecting Oyo State as a pilot location for the programme, describing the decision as recognition of the state’s efforts in education.

“Indeed, we are Pacesetters and we do not take this confidence for granted,” Adeniran said.

He expressed optimism that the partnership would deliver a productive and measurable impact on foundational education in the state.

Speaking earlier, the Zonal Director of UBEC, Beatrice Okei, said the initiative was being introduced at a time when the commission and State Universal Basic Education Boards were working to create a stronger environment for basic education through investment in infrastructure, teacher development and welfare.

Also speaking, the Senior Manager for Africa, Middle East and Asia at the Think Equal Initiative, Anas Tahhan, said the training focused on a revised Learning Through Play pedagogy.

He explained that the approach was intended to promote the holistic development of pre-primary pupils while helping teachers adopt innovative, inclusive and child-centred teaching methods.

Tahhan expressed confidence that the values promoted by the Think Equal programme would complement existing learning processes and help nurture well-rounded, resilient and responsible children.

The engagement was attended by the Executive Secretary of OYOSUBEB, Dr Kemi Adeosun, and other directors of the board.

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The proposed collaboration is expected to strengthen Oyo’s existing investment in early childhood education while placing greater emphasis on the social and emotional skills children need alongside foundational literacy.