The Minister of Education, Maruf Olatunji Alausa, has explained strategies put in place by President Bola Tinubu to reduce the estimated 15 million out-of-school children in Nigeria.
The minister spoke during a ministerial press briefing on Thursday in Abuja.
According to him, the Federal Government has initiated programmes such as technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and initiative geared towards boosting Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education.
Alausa said Tinubu has approved sufficient funding to carry out intense developmental interventions in the country’s education sector.
He said that the government targets the rehabilitation of 195,000 classrooms, the installation of 28,000 toilets, 22,900 boreholes, 14,700 fences, the procurement of 1.68 million school furniture, the construction of 7,700 new schools, 103 million student textbooks, and the supply of two million teaching aids from 2025 to 2027.
The minister said the country expects 650,000 enrollees from TVET, lifting 10 million from the out-of-school children through the reforms of the Universal Basic Education Commission.
He added that through the Nigeria Student Loan, the Federal Government has committed funds to helping citizens see through tertiary institutions.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a firm believer in human capital development. Education is human capital development.
“We will incentivize our youths to acquire technical education.
“We are focusing on practical training. Sponsor our citizen to artisan training and craft.
“The President Bola Ahmed has given enough budget for education to achieve the agenda,” he said.
In the recently signed 2025 budget of N54.9 trillion, education, healthcare, and skills development got N5.7 trillion, up 161 percent from N2.18 trillion in 2024.
