Federal government enrolls 1.2 million out-of-school children in two years

The federal government says it has enrolled 1.2 million out-of-school children in classrooms over the past two years. Tunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, disclosed this during the Channels TV Politics Today live programme titled Education from A to Z Discussion.

Education and Skills Support

The minister stated that the government is using school feeding, additional financing, and other multilayer interventions to bring children to school and retain them. He explained that the government ensures these children receive high quality education and skills. The federal government has also paid about N66 billion in indirect stipends to technical students, with each student getting N30,000 per month.

The minister stated that the government is training 250,000 Nigerians in over 1,200 training centres across the country. The first cohort of about 36,000 has graduated, and 50 percent of them are already employed. The private sector is involved, and the government pays N50,000 per student. President Bola Tinubu's administration is intentional about youth access to education and acquisition of practical and employable skills.

Teacher Support and Student Loans

The government is supporting teachers through Ignite, a cloud-based initiative where teachers can generate resources for lesson plans. The government is also paying for almost 50,000 teachers to upskill. The federal government has deployed about N379 billion to support the Nigerian Education Loan Fund scheme.

Alausa noted that students do not need to know anybody to get the loan, and applicants get a response within two minutes. The direct disbursement to students stands at N192 billion, while N180 billion has been disbursed in fees. Some students send money to their parents in remote areas, stimulating economic activity.