By Adeola Kunle
The Honourable Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Said Ahmed, has outlined wide-ranging reforms being implemented across Nigeria’s education sector under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, covering curriculum renewal, teacher development, tertiary education, student financing, skills acquisition, innovation and interventions for out-of-school children.
She said the Federal Ministry of Education, under the leadership of the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, is strengthening access, improving quality and advancing human capital development across the education value chain.
At the basic education level, Prof. Ahmed highlighted the ongoing reform of the national curriculum to reduce subject overload and move learning away from excessive reliance on rote memorisation towards a competency-based approach focused on what learners understand, can apply and can demonstrate. The curriculum for pre-service teachers is also being reviewed to better prepare teachers for the demands of the modern classroom.
Teacher professional development remains a major priority. Prof. Ahmed disclosed that although about ₦20 billion was provided to states for teacher training in 2025, available data showed that only about 10 per cent of teachers benefited. A baseline assessment also identified teachers who had spent between 25 and 30 years in service without participating in professional development.
To address the gap, the Ministry has introduced a zero-rated digital teacher development platform accessible on Android devices to teachers in public and private schools across rural and urban communities. More than 60,000 teachers have participated in the first phase. The Ministry is also working towards making continuous professional development more structured and eventually mandatory, supported by the Comprehensive Teacher Policy covering recruitment, training, welfare, deployment and career progression. The policy is being developed with the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria and the Nigeria Union of Teachers.
The Ministry is equally strengthening the allocation and monitoring of basic education resources. Prof. Ahmed said the Universal Basic Education Commission has revised its disbursement guidelines and funding formula to make interventions more responsive to actual needs, with stronger links between performance and additional support. Procurement and value for money, particularly in school construction, are also receiving greater attention. A new school grading framework will classify schools from A to D based on infrastructure, facilities, teacher qualifications and learner achievement to guide targeted support and recognise sustained performance.
At the tertiary level, Prof. Ahmed outlined measures to expand access to medicine, pharmacy, science and engineering. She disclosed that 10 medical institutions have been established or strengthened, while admission quotas in some institutions have been doubled or tripled to create additional capacity. More than ₦400 billion, she said, has been invested in expanding capacity in critical fields, alongside stronger accreditation and verification processes. She stressed that institutions must maintain sustainable facilities, equipment and staffing beyond accreditation exercises. The seven-year moratorium on establishing new universities and other tertiary institutions is intended to provide existing institutions with room to strengthen infrastructure, staffing and academic quality.
Student financing is another key component of the access reforms. Prof. Ahmed said the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, has supported more than 1.6 million students from about 322 universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. Participation is voluntary and requires annual application and verification, after which beneficiaries can proceed with registration because NELFUND provides assurance for payment of approved institutional fees. While acknowledging that delays have occurred in some cases, she said the processes are being improved to make the scheme more responsive.
The Minister of State also highlighted interventions targeting children outside the formal education system. She noted that existing estimates of out-of-school children range from about 10 million to more than 20 million, underscoring the need for reliable national data. The Ministry is therefore developing a national education data platform alongside a nationwide mapping exercise. The National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education and the National Commission for Nomadic Education have completed their respective mapping exercises, while the Agency for Mass Education is nearing completion.
Prof. Ahmed said the mapping is being linked directly to enrolment and intervention rather than treated solely as data collection. Traditional and religious leaders are also being engaged to help reach communities where significant numbers of children remain outside the formal school system.
One practical response is the establishment of bilingual schools combining religious and conventional education. The initiative is being prioritised in eight states with some of the highest numbers of out-of-school children, with three schools planned in each state and four in two of the states. The schools are designed with boarding capacities of about 1,500 to 2,000 learners. Prof. Ahmed disclosed that the model is already operational in Maiduguri and Kano, with preparations ongoing in the other participating states.
She also outlined the Almajiri Policy, which clarifies the responsibilities of the Federal Government, state and local governments, parents and communities in providing education for children in the Almajiri system. A key component is the integration of religious and conventional education through an Accelerated Basic Education Curriculum that condenses basic education into four levels while accommodating learners who enter the system at an older age. The policy also provides a minimum age for entry into Alharma schools and was developed through consultations with Islamic sects, Alharma teachers and other stakeholders. Its objective is to provide children with both religious and conventional education while progressively recognising and integrating Alharma teachers and clerics into the wider education framework.
Beyond formal academic pathways, the Ministry is expanding Technical and Vocational Education and Training as part of its human capital development strategy. Prof. Ahmed said a national skills-gap assessment identified about 40 trades, with 25 prioritised for immediate attention. The first application cycle attracted about 1.3 million applications, with more than 100,000 beneficiaries trained through public and private training centres. Participating centres received ₦30,000 per trainee while beneficiaries received ₦22,500 for transportation. The second cohort attracted about 1.8 million applications, with support increased to ₦50,000 per trainee for participating centres and ₦30,000 for beneficiaries. Participants are expected to undergo assessment under the National Skills Qualification Framework and receive starter packs to support transition into employment or enterprise.
The Ministry is also promoting innovation and entrepreneurship among university students. Prof. Ahmed highlighted the Student Venture Capital Grant, which provides up to ₦50 million for students with scalable innovation projects. She also cited the Entrepreneurship, Business and Innovation Centre programme, which began at the University of Lagos and is being expanded to 16 additional universities to provide entrepreneurship training, mentoring and access to funding alongside academic study.
According to the Minister of State, data and digitalisation are central to monitoring the reforms. The Ministry is strengthening learner-level data, digitising processes and expanding electronic monitoring to improve planning, resource allocation and assessment of results. School grading, national assessments and e-monitoring will provide evidence on learning outcomes, teacher development, access and institutional performance, allowing interventions to be assessed on measurable results rather than simply the number of programmes introduced.
Prof. Ahmed said the reforms will ultimately be measured by improvements in learning outcomes, stronger teacher capacity, expanded access to education, increased skills opportunities and a reduction in the number of children excluded from the education system. Drawing from her experience as a product of Nigeria’s public university system, she underscored the importance of maintaining public education as a pathway to opportunity and human capital development.
She reaffirmed her commitment to working with the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, to sustain the reform momentum and ensure that policies and programmes translate into tangible outcomes for learners, teachers and institutions. Prof. Ahmed said the Federal Government remains committed to strengthening the foundations of Nigeria’s education system and ensuring that the reforms contribute to the realisation of the Renewed Hope Agenda through improved education, skills development, human capital growth and expanded opportunities for Nigerians.
Adeola Kunle
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