By Henry Umoru
ABUJA- VICE President Kashim Shettima yesterday raised alarm that the millions of out-of-school children in the country have become a national emergency.
According to him, it has become imperative for all hands to be on deck by the federal, state, local governments and all critical stakeholders in order to address the problem.
Speaking at the 2025 Nigeria Education Forum, NEF, organised by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, NGF, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education and other partners, Shettima said the crisis in the education sector could not be solved by government efforts alone, and called for urgent action to ensure that no Nigerian was denied tertiary education due to financial constraints.
Speaking on the theme, “Pathways to Sustainable Education Financing: Developing a Synergy Between Town and Gown,” Shettima emphasised the need for sustainable education financing and inclusive access to higher education.
The vice president, who was represented by his Special Adviser on General Duties, Aliyu Modibbo Umar, said teachers must receive proper training, welfare, and professional recognition for Nigeria to achieve meaningful learning and outcomes.
He revealed that federal education allocations had risen sharply from N1.54 trillion in 2023 to N3.52 trillion in the 2025 budget, saying “the millions of out-of-school children represent a national emergency requiring joint action by the federal, state, local governments and community stakeholders.”
Shettima noted that though the federal government had significantly increased investments in education, funding gaps remained too large for government to shoulder alone, and noted the allocation of N92.4 billion through UBEC for state-level grants, teacher training, and community education projects.
The vice president hailed the impact of the National Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, which, according to him, has disbursed N86.3 billion to over 450,000 students across 218 institutions, removing financial barriers and enabling more Nigerians to attend tertiary institutions.
Shettima insisted that building a resilient education system required co-investment from the private sector, industry leaders, alumni associations, philanthropists, and communities.
“We must move beyond government-only funding and embrace a collaborative model that supports laboratories, research centres, vocational hubs, innovation clusters, and endowment funds,’’ he said.
He cited notable increases in TETFUND, UBEC and NELFUND allocations, including N86.3 billion already disbursed to over 450,000 tertiary students under the student loan scheme.
In his remarks, Chairman of NGF and governor of Kwara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, explained that the programme was an annual think tank where policy makers and industry players met to chart a coherent pathway for sustainable education financing and meaningful sector reforms.
He said: “Today, Nigeria stands at a defining moment. With 43% of our population under the age 14 years and another 33% between 15 and 24 years old, our demographic trajectory presents an extraordinary opportunity for wise and systemic investment.
‘’Available data show that we must accelerate our efforts through national education spending which remains at 3% of Gross Domestic Product, GDP.
‘’This is well below the global benchmark of 4-6% education spending to GDP. The 8% and 14% budgetary allocations to education in the national and subnational budgets fall short of the UNESCO’s recommended 15-20% benchmark for sustainable education financing” he said. Represented by the Director, General, Dr. Abdulateef Shittu, the Chairman of the forum noted that significant shift was currently being attained across the states.
He said: “Across the states, however, we are seeing a promising shift. States spent N1trillion, that is, 12% of their total expenditure on education in 2022. In 2023, N1.6 trillion was provided for in the budgets of the states for the education sector. In 2024, states committed N2.4 trillion for education.
“However, in 2025, state governments collectively increased education budgets by 53%, from ¦ 2.4 trillion to ¦ 3.6 trillion, driven largely by a 69% rise in capital allocations. But the impact of this commitment is constrained by execution. In 2024, states utilised only 67% of budgeted funds, resulting in an ¦ 800 billion shortfall rooted in unexecuted capital projects. This recurring implementation gap is one of the most urgent issues before us.’’
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