President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to education, describing it as a central pillar of his Renewed Hope Agenda, during his national broadcast to mark Nigeria’s 65th Independence Anniversary on Wednesday.
Speaking from the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Tinubu noted that the country has witnessed remarkable expansion in access to education since Independence in 1960. He recalled that Nigeria then had only 120 secondary schools and two tertiary institutions, the University of Ibadan and Yaba College of Technology compared to over 23,000 secondary schools, 274 universities, 183 polytechnics, and 236 colleges of education recorded as of 2024.
The president said his administration is redirecting resources saved from fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms toward education, healthcare, and infrastructure, stressing that investments in schools are critical to the nation’s future.
He also highlighted the rollout of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which has so far benefited about 510,000 students across 36 states and the FCT. According to him, N99.5 billion has been disbursed in tuition loans, alongside N44.7 billion in upkeep allowances, covering 228 higher institutions nationwide.
“Our young people are the greatest assets of this country,” Tinubu said. “Through NELFUND and other initiatives, we are giving them wings to fly high and achieve their dreams.”
Other youth-focused interventions mentioned include YouthCred, which provides credit facilities to National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, and the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) programme, a multi-partner initiative to support innovation in technology and the creative sector.
Tinubu assured Nigerians that education will remain a top priority of his administration. He linked the success of his broader reform agenda to the quality of education, stating: “The true measure of our progress will not only be in economic statistics, but in the quality of education our children receive.”
