The level of decay in Nigeria’s education sector is disturbing. Schools are not in good shape. The facilities that are needed to adequately teach students and contribute to the society’s development are missing.
The greatest challenge facing education in Nigeria is inadequate funding by the government. Mismanagement and poor infrastructure have crippled the education sector in Nigeria. Education is said to be the bedrock of development and generally and individual. The illiteracy level calls for concern. Government’s attitude towards the crucial problem of education is lackadaisical.
In 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari allocated 7.04% of the N8.6trillion budget to education. The total sum allocated to the education sector was N605.8billion with N435.1billion for recurrent expenditure, N61.73billion for capital expenditure and N109.06billion for Universal Basic Education Commission. Meanwhile, the proposed 2020 budget for education is the lowest so far.
Similarly, corruption is a global menace and it has affected every sector of our national life. In many institutions, lecturers are known to collect money from students in exchange for good grades. Some say they have to bribe university executives in order to have their exam results compiled and submitted to the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) for mobilisation.
Also, the industrial strike actions teachers embark on have a lot of negative effect on students. Strike actions happen almost in all public institutions. These actions are caused by irregularities in payment of teachers’ salaries, lack of dialogue between government and other relevant authorities.
Most public schools and institutions are in very bad conditions. The buildings are in bad shape and most of them lack teaching materials. Schools lack technical and practical facilities. The libraries lack books.
Furthermore, there is also an alarming rate of examination malpractices encouraged by teachers, parents and students. Some influential parents use their statuses to influence the education of their wards.
What then is the solution? It is important that the government should pay the needed attention to education in Nigeria. Our education system is in dire straits and the government should strive to improve education in the country.
The ultimate aim of the education sector system is to equip children with literacy and skills required to realise their potential. Adequate funding with good management will eliminate strike actions and also improve our education standards. The level of corruption in education needs to be taken seriously and tackled. Salaries of teachers must be upwardly reviewed. Proper training of teachers with current and up-to-date materials will improve the condition of education in Nigeria. Entry into tertiary institutions should be based solely on merit level. The government should also provide more facilities to eliminate examination malpractices.
Obi Chidinma, obichidinma16@gmail.com
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