FG, states must properly fund public education — NUT

The Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) has expressed strong displeasure over the poor funding of public education in the country, calling on both the Federal and state governments to urgently take decisive action to address the situation.

The union said the failure of successive governments at all levels to give the sector proper attention by investing substantially in it has not only given private school operators the opportunity to exploit already impoverished Nigerians but has also widened the existing poverty and inequality gap between rich and poor families.

NUT raised this concern in Lagos on Friday at the official launch of the “Go Public, Fund Education Campaign” in Nigeria, alongside a capacity-building workshop for its leaders from Osun, Edo, and Lagos states.

The event brought together participants from the NUT leadership, the Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Teaching Service Commissions (TESCOM) of the participating states, students, Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA), the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), and the media. It was hosted by NUT national in collaboration with Education International (EI) and Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), global educational development advocates.

Speaking at the forum, the National President of NUT, Audu Titus Amba, underscored the importance of providing quality and inclusive free education to every Nigerian child, irrespective of background, if the country truly desires greatness. He stressed the need for governments at all levels not to shift this responsibility to non-state actors whose primary interest is profit-making.

Amba explained that “Go Public, Fund Education” is EI’s flagship global campaign, urging governments, especially in developing countries like Nigeria, as well as intergovernmental organisations and donor agencies, to invest generously in teachers and public education systems.

He lamented that low government investment in public education has left the sector dysfunctional, riddled with challenges that undermine socio-economic progress.

According to him, the seeming failure of governments to invest adequately in quality, free, and inclusive public education, combined with the determination of private providers to fill the gap, has led to the proliferation of private primary and secondary schools across the country.

Citing 2024 UBEC statistics, Amba noted that Nigeria has 91,232 private primary schools compared to 79,777 public schools. He described this development as unacceptable and contrary to the situation in the past.

He further observed that the surge in private schools is largely driven by government neglect of public schools and failure to regulate profit-oriented private operators.

“Even though the National Policy on Education acknowledges the complementary role of private providers, and the National Policy on Non-State Actors in Nigeria has recently been developed, the operations of private providers remain largely unregulated across the federation,” Amba said.

He warned that this unregulated expansion has turned education into a tradable commodity, denying the less privileged, disadvantaged, and vulnerable—particularly children with disabilities and those in rural areas—access to quality education, thereby hindering Nigeria’s progress toward achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 4 on quality education for all.

Amba emphasised:

• “Privatisation and commercialisation of education create stratification and segregation, which lead to huge disparities in opportunities and social inequalities.

• Free, quality public education for all is key to the country’s sustainable development.

• Governments must increase education financing to meet the internationally recommended benchmark of 6% of GDP and 20% of the national budget, alongside adopting progressive tax policies and ensuring transparent use of resources.”

He thanked EI and FES for supporting the campaign, describing its expected impact as “immeasurable.”

In his goodwill message, the President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, condemned government insensitivity to the realities in the sector.

He noted that education remains the bedrock of national development, with countries such as China, India, Vietnam, and Japan making tremendous progress by prioritising it.

“Education is not a commodity to be priced and sold in the marketplace but the very foundation upon which a country’s economy rests,” Ajaero said, represented by NLC Deputy President Prince Adeyanju Adewale.

He added that education protects not just a skilled workforce but also critical thinkers, conscious citizens, and an empowered populace capable of shaping their destiny.

Unfortunately, he said, Nigerians are witnessing a deliberate agenda of privatising and commercialising education at the expense of public schools.

He described the development as a manifestation of neoliberalism and class politics designed to strip working-class and poor students of their right to knowledge, relegating them to a life of servitude exploitable by the elite.

Ajaero stressed that commercialisation does not promote efficiency but instead auctions off the nation’s future to a privileged few.

He criticised the political class for frequently claiming that there are no funds to finance public education, pointing out that “there is always a bottomless pit of public funds for private luxuries and opulent lifestyles.”

“The issue is not a crisis of resources but of priorities and political will,” he said.

“To underfund public education is to consciously disarm the nation. It is an act of economic sabotage that cripples our potential and mortgages our collective future.”

He affirmed the NLC’s unwavering support for NUT, EI, and FES in the campaign against the commodification of education, demanding that the state fulfil its constitutional responsibility to provide free, quality public education for all.

“This campaign must move from dialogue to adoption, from proposals to protest if necessary. Our commonwealth must be invested in our common future. Quality education is for all, not just for the privileged few,” Ajaero concluded.

Also speaking, TRCN Registrar and Chief Executive, Dr. Ronke Soyombo, highlighted the importance of investing in teachers.

“When teachers are overstretched, infrastructure crumbles, and learning becomes a privilege rather than a right,” she said.

She lamented that while most of today’s leaders attended public schools, those schools have now deteriorated due to government neglect.

Although she noted that privatisation and commercialisation are not inherently negative, she warned that relying on them as substitutes for government responsibility deepens inequality and risks creating a two-tiered system.

“But that is not the Nigeria we envision. That is not the future our children deserve,” she said.

Soyombo stressed that funding directly influences quality:
“You cannot demand excellence from teachers while denying them decent working conditions. You cannot expect innovation in the classroom when basic materials are absent. You cannot build a knowledge economy on the back of an exhausted, under-resourced teaching force.”

She urged teachers yet to be certified to enrol for TRCN’s November qualifying exam, describing certification as both professional identity and a passport to career advancement.

In his keynote, Dr. Dennis Sinyolo, Regional Director of EI Africa, emphasised that education is a human right and public good, enshrined in international treaties and Nigeria’s constitution.

He noted that Nigeria’s 18.3 million out-of-school children threaten the country’s ability to achieve SDG 4 and AU Agenda 2063 goals.

Sinyolo, represented by Dr. Pedi Anawi, Regional Coordinator of EI Africa, said governments across Africa fail to meet the minimum education financing benchmark of 20% of the national budget or 6% of GDP. This, he said, has created fertile ground for profit-driven private providers.

“The aim is not to fight privatisation but to ensure human rights and fairness are not compromised. Education, like security and defence, must be well funded to give every child a fair chance to succeed,” he said.

Representing the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, Principal of King’s College, Lagos, Mogaji Zakaria, commended NUT’s commitment to advancing public education.

He described the campaign theme as more than a slogan, calling it a “clarion call to action” aligned with government priorities.

“Government cannot ignore the crisis in education, and that is why we support this advocacy,” he said.

Students from Lagos public schools, as well as representatives from teaching service commissions in Edo, Lagos, and Osun, including Osun TESCOM Chairman, Mr. Tope Mustapha also made presentations at the event.