Vice President Kashim Shettima has raised alarm over the rising number of out-of-school children in Nigeria, describing it as a national emergency that requires urgent, coordinated action from the federal, state, and local governments, as well as critical stakeholders.

Speaking at the 2025 Nigeria Education Forum (NEF) organized by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education, Shettima emphasized that the crisis in the education sector cannot be solved by government efforts alone. He stressed that no Nigerian should be denied tertiary education due to financial constraints.

The forum, held under the theme “Pathways to Sustainable Education Financing: Developing a Synergy Between Town and Gown,” highlighted the need for sustainable education financing and inclusive access to higher education. Shettima commended efforts under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda, noting a significant increase in federal education allocations from N1.54 trillion in 2023 to N3.52 trillion in 2025.

The Vice President, represented by his Special Adviser on General Duties, Aliyu Modibbo Umar, called for proper training, welfare, and professional recognition for teachers as critical steps toward improving learning outcomes. He also lauded the National Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which has disbursed N86.3 billion to over 450,000 students, helping remove financial barriers to higher education.

Shettima stressed that addressing the out-of-school children crisis requires collaborative partnerships between the government, private sector, communities, and development partners. He also highlighted the importance of investing in laboratories, vocational centers, school infrastructure, security, and curricula aligned with industry needs.

“Building a resilient education system requires co-investment from the private sector, industry leaders, alumni associations, philanthropists, and communities. We must move beyond government-only funding to a collaborative model supporting laboratories, research centres, vocational hubs, innovation clusters, and endowment funds,” he said.

Chairman of NGF and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq noted the critical role of states in education financing, highlighting that state allocations rose from N1 trillion in 2022 to N3.6 trillion in 2025. However, he warned that execution gaps remain a challenge, with only 67% of budgeted funds utilized in 2024.

The forum also underscored three strategic priorities:

Access and Continuity: Expanding enrolment, retention, and transition across all levels, particularly for vulnerable groups.

Learning and Skills Development: Strengthening literacy, numeracy, teacher capacity, and alignment of curricula with labor market needs.

Sustainable Financing and Efficient Delivery: Improving domestic revenue mobilization, diversifying funding through public-private partnerships, and ensuring disciplined execution of capital investments.

Shettima concluded that education reform is no longer optional but an economic, social, and national security imperative, urging all stakeholders to close financing and execution gaps and ensure every Nigerian child thrives in the 21st-century knowledge economy. (Vanguard)

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