We’ll ensure 20 million out of school Nigerian children return to school in four years

Twenty million Nigerian children who are not currently in school are expected to return within the next four years, according to the Ministry of Education.

Naija News reports that Education Minister, Prof. Tahir Mamman, said this on Monday at the 2024 budget defence hearing in front of the National Assembly on Education’s joint committee in Abuja.

According to him, millions of children in Nigeria are not attending school, which is a significant issue for the nation.

He said, “At the tertiary level, we need graduates who have skills and competence to be able to contribute to national development.

“We need graduates who can be employed by willing employers, right now, we have complaints about the quality of the products from our universities and polytechnics.

“Basically the policy trust of the government and this ministry is on these major areas. There are about 20 million out-of-school children or even more in Nigeria.

“We are working on it to ensure that as many as possible of these children, for those of them that can come back to school, are given the opportunity to come back. For those who cannot, we want to ensure they are empowered through short-term skills training that will give them the opportunity to connect with society to have a meaningful likelihood.”

To guarantee that pupils acquire the necessary skills, the minister stated that the ministry had consulted with relevant parties to reform Nigeria’s educational curriculum.

He urged academic institutions to incorporate business and skill development into their courses in order to produce graduates who can support themselves.

According to Mamman, N101.45 billion was allotted for the ministry in 2024; N5.88 billion went toward staff costs, N1.08 billion went toward overhead, and N94.48 billion went toward capital bills.