THE MAJOR PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY IS TO EXAMINE THE USES OF COMMITTEES AND GROUP MEETINGS IN ENHANCING DECISION MAKING IN NIGERIAN PUBLIC ORGANIZATION USING UNIVERSAL BASIC EDUCATION BOARD, AWKA ANAMBRA STATE AS THE CASE STUDY IN THE COURSE OF FINDINGS, THE RESEARCHER MADE USE OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY DATA IN ARRIVING AT ITS FINDINGS. SIMPLE PERCENTAGE WAS USED TO ANSWER AND ANALYSED THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS. THE RESEARCHER, HOWEVER DISCOVERED THAT THE USES OF COMMITTEES AND GROUPS MEETINGS IN ENHANCING DECISION MAKING IN NIGERIA PUBLIC ORGANIZATION ENSURES (I) QUICK DECISION MAKING IN AN ORGANIZATION (II) ALLOW FOR AN ADEQUATE TREATMENT OF ISSUES THAT ARE TECHNICAL IN NATURE (III) GIVES ROOMS FOR APPROPRIATE DECISION TO BE TAKEN ON MATTERS THAT AFFECT THE WHOLE ORGANIZATION. (IV) GIVES AN OPPORTUNITY TO INVOLVE GREATER NUMBER OF LEGISLATORS IN DECISION MAKING IN AN ORGANIZATION. THE RESEARCHER RECOMMENDS THAT GOVERNMENT AT VARIOUS LEVEL SHOULD TRY AS MUSH AS POSSIBLE TO ENHANCE THE USES OF COMMITTEES AND GROUP MEETINGS IN ENHANCING DECISION MAKING IN NIGERIA PUBLIC ORGANIZATION IN ORDER TO ENSURE GREATER PARTICIPATION LEGISLATORS AND WELFARE OF CITIZENS IN GENERAL.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

McKenna and Flenning (1977) defined committee as “group of individuals which is formed to consider and report various matters which have been referred to them”. At the unset, it will be necessary to explain in a compendium the two major terms of the topic for better understanding.

A committee can be for an important issue and in that, it is responsible to the body which forms it and infact reports to it at the end of its assignment.

While there is a specific and special connotation on the formation of committees towards the performance of their indentified and specific task. A meeting according to Shas (1965) is an assembly of persons and such assembly may arise in circumstance infinitely diverse in their character and combination. From these definitions, a group meeting is just a meeting of a group of people with common objectives and interest, and in that sense, it may be a committee.

The primary pre-occupation of Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB) anywhere is basically looking after the affairs of the primary school students in the state, this is because through them, the states can ascertain the condition of things comprehensively but only through their board of directors and such meetings decisions can be reached on its varied functions.

Since the organization time is limited, matters to be dealt with most times are either technical or highly specialized. The need therefore arises to form a committee to solve the problem. This is exactly the case in the Universal Basic Education Board, Awka, Anambra State, while a body of many members concentrate on discussing the principles the committee of few members are formed to discuss the details of the proposal and report back to the full body of the organization with recommendations.

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The uses of committees and group meetings is a very important issue and that is the reason for the creation of the committees for the organization. They have the power to coordinate the activities of the state primary school. It aims at pushing the local people on the path to educational development. It means that committees and group meetings has to do with the group of elite or selected people superimposed authority to see affairs, social well being of the state primary school. The existence of committees and group meetings in the Universal Basic Education Board must not stand on its own, they must be dependent on the chairman of the board or have the total delegated power or authority from the chairman for smooth functioning. Most often, some matters in the organization requires expertise and specialist knowledge such matters are handle better of committee who in turn reports to the board who takes the final decision. A committee must have a chairperson or can be headed by a chairman who directs the meetings proceedings.

The research study is concerned with the effect on the uses of committees and group meetings in enhancing decision making in the Universal Basic Education Board, Awka, Anambra State. A close look at the evolutionary trend of the committee and group meetings in enhancing decision making in the Universal Basic Education Board. The Universal Basic Education Board programme was established in Nigeria with an act of the national assembly in 1999 during the general Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration. This led to the re-organization of the Board to focus on promoting education and providing formal basic education encompassing the first nine (9) years of schooling, i.e. primary and junior secondary education for all children in Anambra State. For this reason, the board was renamed, the state Universal Basic Education Board and this has equally led to the board forming a committee with the commissioner for education among the committee members to establish and manage schools, and provide formal education to local communities as well as provides facilities and enabling environment for early stimulation of the young child.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS

The Universal Basic Education Board in Anambra State has been facing a lot of problems. The major reasons in which the Universal Basic Education Board was established are for administrative efficiency, provisions of education as well as provisions of social amenities. Unfortunately, most of the Universal Basic Education Boards in Nigeria have not been able to perform those assigned functions expected of them. This ugly situation was caused by the following factors.

a. Inadequate funds for the Universal Basic Education to execute some of its projects in the state. Inadequate revenue from both the external source and that of internally generated revenue.

b. There is lack of skilled man-power to implement policies aimed at achieving educational development, all these factors are combined to affect the quality of education.

c. Corruption among officials: It is also instructive to note that the phenomenon of corruption is compounding the problem of shortage of funds in the implementation of the UBA programme. Even, where the allocated funds is not enough, the little that is made available is usually embezzled by corrupt officials working in the board.

1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The general purpose of this study is to examine the use of committees and group meetings in enhancing decision making in the Universal Basic Education Board, Awka, Anambra State.

1. To know the extent to which committees and group meetings has helped in enhancing decision making in the Universal Basic Education Board in Anambra State.

2. To determine the factors militating against the effectiveness of committees and group meetings in enhancing decision making in the Universal Basic Education Board, Anambra State.

3. To proffer solutions to the problems facing the effective and efficient committee and group meetings in Anambra State Universal Basic Education Board.