Plan International Nigeria has attributed the persistent rise in the number of out-of-school children in the country to the failure of state governments to fully implement the Universal Basic Education (UBE) Act, more than two decades after its enactment. The organization pointed out that the 2024 report by the Universal Basic Education Commission showed that 27 out of 36 states failed to provide the required counterpart funding for basic education as stipulated in the Act. The report also noted that only N21 billion out of the N51.6 billion allocated by the Federal Government as matching grants for basic education in 2023 was accessed by 16 states, representing 41 percent of the appropriated funds.
Press Conference Highlights
Addressing a press conference yesterday in Abuja, the Country Director of Plan International Nigeria, Dr. Charles Usie, said the UBE Act, passed in 2004, promised free and compulsory education from primary to junior secondary school level, but lamented that poor implementation and inadequate funding had undermined its objectives. Usie said despite the law, Nigeria currently has between 18.5 million and 20 million out-of-school children, compared to about five million recorded when the Act was signed into law in 2004. He decried that significant implementation gaps still exist more than two decades after the passage of the law, noting that the goal of guaranteeing access to education and reducing the number of out-of-school children had not been achieved.
Key Challenges Identified
According to him, inadequate funding, weak compliance by states with counterpart funding obligations, widening infrastructure deficits, teacher shortages, and poor attention to the welfare and dignity of girls in schools continue to affect the education sector. Usie further stated that the current two percent allocation from the Consolidated Revenue Fund to basic education was inadequate to meet the increasing demand for education in view of Nigeria's growing population and rising number of out-of-school children. He also linked the high rate of out-of-school children to the non-justiciability of the right to education in the Nigerian Constitution, gaps in policies and laws, as well as poor implementation of existing education policies.
Recommendations for Reform
The organization however called on the Federal Government to increase the allocation to the Universal Basic Education Commission from two percent to five percent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund to ensure sustainable implementation of universal basic education. Plan International Nigeria also advocated amendments to the UBE Act to strengthen penalties for parents who fail to comply with compulsory education provisions, recommending options such as fines and community service. They further called for the inclusion of senior secondary, vocational, and special education in the scope of compulsory basic education under the Act.
Funding and Girls' Education
It also urged the government to review the counterpart funding arrangement to enable more states access matching grants through a phased or flexible funding approach. On girls' education, the organization recommended the establishment of menstrual hygiene stations in schools to provide girls with hygiene products and dignity kits to improve attendance and retention in schools. The group supported ongoing efforts at the National Assembly to move the right to education from Chapter Two to Chapter Four of the Constitution to make it an enforceable fundamental right.
Call to Action
Usie called on the National Assembly, Federal and state governments, development partners, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to urgently address Nigeria's growing education crisis through reforms, increased investment, and stronger political commitment. Director of Programme Quality and Influencing, Dr. Helen Idiong, stressed the need for government at all levels to prioritize education, saying if Nigeria wants to turn the tide of corruption, insecurity, and other vices, then it must ensure that every child has access to education from primary to senior secondary school, while those that cannot further their education should be provided with vocational training opportunities.
