Initiative reinforces the state’s commitment to inclusive education and equal learning opportunities for children with disabilities.
The Oyo State Government has reaffirmed its commitment to inclusive education with the distribution of free Braille textbooks to visually impaired pupils in 10 special basic schools across the state, ensuring that every child, regardless of physical disability, has equal access to quality education.
The Director-General of the Oyo State Agency for Persons with Disabilities, Barrister Ayodele Adekambi, stated this during the distribution ceremony held at the Conference Room of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan.
Adekambi explained that the initiative was conceived in 2022 following discussions with the Directorate of Special Needs and Inclusion on the need to make Braille learning materials readily available for visually impaired learners. He noted that while Braille textbooks were first distributed to visually impaired secondary school students in 2024, the production of Braille textbooks specifically for pupils in basic schools was conceived in 2025 and has now become a reality.
According to him, Oyo State remains the only state in Nigeria investing in the production and free distribution of Braille textbooks for visually impaired learners, describing the initiative as a landmark achievement in the nation’s education sector.
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Mrs. Bamidele Oyinloye, described textbooks as indispensable tools for effective teaching and learning. She stressed that visual impairment should never limit a child’s ability to attain academic excellence, noting that the Braille textbooks would significantly improve learning outcomes for the beneficiaries.
She commended the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde and the Oyo State Agency for Persons with Disabilities for making the project a reality, adding that considerable resources and effort were invested in producing the books. She urged the benefiting schools to make judicious use of the materials and ensure their proper preservation.
Also speaking, the Acting Director of Special Needs and Inclusion, Mr. Aderemi Suara, disclosed that no previous administration in Oyo State had produced Braille textbooks for visually impaired learners. He recalled that on June 27, 2024, the state government distributed Braille textbooks, teaching aids and instructional materials to secondary schools with visually impaired students, while the current exercise extends the intervention to the basic education level.
The textbooks were distributed to 10 special basic schools across Oyo, Ibadan, Ogbomoso, Okeho, Saki, Iseyin and Eruwa. They cover key subjects including Mathematics, English Language, Basic Science and Technology, Christian Religious Studies, Islamic Religious Studies, Pre-Vocational Studies, National Values, Yoruba Language and Literature storybooks.
The event climaxed with an impressive reading from one of the Braille literature storybooks by Miss Tobiloba Funmilayo, a Basic Five pupil of Omoyeni Special Basic School, Orita-Aperin, Ibadan, demonstrating the transformative impact of accessible learning materials on the education of visually impaired children.