NUT seeks improved funding for education, security for schools

The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has called for increased funding for education in Nigeria, saying the country’s education sector also needs improved welfare for teachers and stronger protection of schools against insecurity.

The National President of NUT, Comrade Audu Titus Amba, Amba made the call on Tuesday while speaking at 59th National Delegates Conference of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in Enugu, the Enugu State Capital.

The NUT President identified poor remuneration, teacher shortages, dilapidated infrastructure, inadequate instructional materials, underfunding, insecurity, weak policy implementation and the digital divide among the major challenges confronting the sector.

He urged governments at all levels to increase investment in education and fully implement approved teachers’ welfare packages, including the special salary structure, bursaries, pension scheme, housing and loan facilities.

According to Amba, NUT remained committed to working with governments, labour unions, Education International and other stakeholders to strengthen the teaching profession and improve learning outcomes.

Also speaking, Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State said the future of education should not be framed as a contest between teachers and technology, but as a partnership in which technology empowers teachers to deliver better learning outcomes.

Mbah said Artificial Intelligence (AI) could assist teachers in lesson preparation, personalise learning, identify learning gaps and expand access to knowledge, but could not replace the human qualities that define effective teaching.

“The future is therefore not teacher versus technology. The future is teacher with technology,” the governor declared.

The former NUT national president and Governor of Kebbi State, Nasir Idris, also used the occasion to highlight the importance of investing in teachers, saying his administration had placed workers’ welfare and education among its priorities.

Idris said Kebbi had maintained an up-to-date payment system for workers’ salaries, pensions, gratuities and death benefits at the state and local government levels, including local government education authorities.

“We don’t owe salaries, we don’t owe pensions, and we don’t owe gratuity,” the governor said.

He said his administration had recruited thousands of workers, including teachers and health personnel, while more than 5,000 professional workers had been absorbed into the permanent civil service to address casualisation.

Idris said his administration had also invested in the construction, renovation and furnishing of more than 2,000 schools, including the provision of thousands of pieces of furniture for teachers and pupils.

The governor said his administration was determined to keep children in school and reduce the number of out-of-school children in Kebbi communities.

He recalled that his transition from teaching to politics had initially attracted criticism from those who questioned whether a teacher could govern a state, but said workers stood by him and supported his emergence as governor.

“Teaching has done so many things for me,” Idris said, explaining that this informed his decision to extend the years of service for teachers in Kebbi from 35 to 40 years.

He said the state’s commitment to teachers’ welfare was aimed at ensuring that no teacher, worker or pensioner was owed salary or pension arrears.

Also addressing the conference, the Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Aisha Garba, said technology and AI should complement, rather than replace, teachers.

Garba said reforms in the education sector were increasingly prioritising educational technology, digital professional development, AI and data-driven systems in education planning and classroom practice.

She disclosed that UBEC had established 37 Smart Model Schools and 74 Digital Learning Centres, comprising two centres in each state and the Federal Capital Territory, to expand digital learning and strengthen teachers’ capacity.

She urged stakeholders to ensure that investments in technology remained inclusive and sustainable, particularly in underserved communities.

The theme of the conference is “The Deployment of Technology and Artificial Intelligence in Education Will Erode the Place of Teachers in the Classroom: A Myth or Reality?”

The conference, held at the International Conference Centre, Enugu, brought together teachers, education administrators, government officials and other stakeholders to examine the future of teaching in the era of rapid technological advancement.Sam Nwaoko

The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has called for increased funding in education in Nigeria, saying the country’s education sector also needs improved welfare for teachers and stronger protection of schools against insecurity.

The National President of NUT Comrade Audu Titus Amba, Amba made the call on Tuesday while speaking at 59th National Delegates Conference of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in Enugu the Enugu State Capital.

The NUT President identified poor remuneration, teacher shortages, dilapidated infrastructure, inadequate instructional materials, underfunding, insecurity, weak policy implementation and the digital divide among the major challenges confronting the sector.

He urged governments at all levels to increase investment in education and fully implement approved teachers’ welfare packages, including the special salary structure, bursaries, pension scheme, housing and loan facilities.

According to Amba, NUT remained committed to working with governments, labour unions, Education International and other stakeholders to strengthen the teaching profession and improve learning outcomes.

Also speaking, Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State said the future of education should not be framed as a contest between teachers and technology, but as a partnership in which technology empowers teachers to deliver better learning outcomes.

Mbah said Artificial Intelligence (AI) could assist teachers in lesson preparation, personalise learning, identify learning gaps and expand access to knowledge, but could not replace the human qualities that define effective teaching.

“The future is therefore not teacher versus technology. The future is teacher with technology,” the governor declared.

The host governor said AI should be regarded as a “handmaid of development” capable of making teachers more productive, innovative and effective, rather than an instrument designed to take away their jobs.

Mbah, who said his administration had invested heavily in education in the last 40 months, disclosed that more than 33 per cent of the state’s total budget across three budget cycles had been allocated to the sector.

He said the state had recruited 6,850 teachers and other education personnel to address manpower shortages and improve the student-teacher ratio, while Smart Green Schools were being developed across the state’s 260 wards.

The governor said the technology-driven schools were designed to prepare children for the future, stressing that the transformation of education must also include investment in the people responsible for delivering it—the teachers.

He called for ethical standards, data protection, responsible regulation and continuous capacity building for teachers to ensure that AI was deployed responsibly in the education sector.

“Our teachers must not be victims of the technological revolution. They must be among its principal beneficiaries and drivers,” Mbah said.

The position was reinforced by the keynote speaker, Executive Director (Academics), African Federation of Teaching Regulatory Authorities (AFTRA), Prof. Steve Nwokeocha, who said the fear that educational technology could erode the place of teachers was real, but should be addressed through adaptation and continuous professional development.

The former NUT national president and Governor of Kebbi State, Nasir Idris, also used the occasion to highlight the importance of investing in teachers, saying his administration had placed workers’ welfare and education among its priorities.

Idris said Kebbi had maintained an up-to-date payment system for workers’ salaries, pensions, gratuities and death benefits at the state and local government levels, including local government education authorities.

“We don’t owe salaries, we don’t owe pensions and we don’t owe gratuity,” the governor said.