The reopening of schools across Nigeria for the 2026/2027 academic session has been overshadowed by the continued shutdown of the country’s 115 Federal Unity Colleges, with staff unions insisting that the institutions will not reopen until the Federal Government suspends its concession of King’s College, Lagos, to the school’s Old Boys’ Association.
While schools in many parts of the country resumed academic activities on Monday, September 14, workers in the Federal Unity Colleges maintained their boycott, preventing students, including newly admitted pupils, from gaining access to their schools.
The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), alongside the Joint Congress of Unions of the Federal Ministry of Education, declared that the action remained “total” and would continue until the government reverses or suspends the King’s College concession. The unions said they would not be deterred by directives from the Federal Government or possible administrative sanctions.
The dispute centres on the Federal Government’s decision to transfer the management responsibilities of King’s College, Lagos, to the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA) under a concession arrangement. The Ministry of Education had, in a September 4 letter, directed the immediate handover of the institution and constituted a transition committee to oversee the process.
According to the ministry, the transition is expected to take six months, after which Federal Government funding of the college would cease under the proposed arrangement. The government, however, has repeatedly maintained that the school has not been sold or privatised.
Education Minister, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the Federal Government would retain legal ownership and oversight of the 117-year-old institution. He explained that the concession was intended to transfer responsibility for financing, rehabilitation, modernisation, operation and maintenance to KCOBA while preserving the school’s public character and its status as part of the Unity Schools system.
The unions have rejected that explanation, arguing that the King’s College arrangement could establish a precedent for other Federal Unity Colleges. They contend that if the government proceeds with the model, other institutions within the system could eventually face similar arrangements.
The workers also alleged that the Ministry of Education disregarded the recommendations of an earlier committee established to examine infrastructure challenges affecting King’s College and other Federal Unity Colleges. According to the unions, the committee included representatives of ASCSN and ministry officials and was expected to develop acceptable solutions before the concession decision was taken.
The controversy has also affected parents and students. Peter Oluwaleye, Chairman of the King’s College Parent-Teacher Association, confirmed that students were not expected to resume because teachers and other workers had withdrawn their services. He also said the solidarity action extended beyond King’s College to Federal Unity Colleges across the country.
The unions have described their action as more than an industrial dispute, presenting it as a broader struggle over the future of public education in Nigeria. They argue that the government should address infrastructure and funding challenges within the existing public-school system rather than transferring management responsibilities to alumni organisations.
The development creates an unusual situation for the new academic session: while pupils and students in many public and private schools have returned to classrooms, thousands of students admitted into Federal Unity Colleges remain at home because of the unresolved dispute.
The timing is particularly significant because Federal Unity Colleges serve students from different parts of Nigeria and were established to promote national integration while providing access to quality secondary education. Continued closure therefore has implications beyond the immediate disruption of lessons, affecting examinations, academic calendars, boarding arrangements and the welfare of students and families who depend on the institutions.
The Federal Government, on its part, faces the challenge of resolving the dispute without undermining its stated objective of rehabilitating institutions affected by infrastructure and funding constraints.
The immediate question is now whether both sides can return to negotiation and establish clear safeguards around ownership, funding, admission, affordability, staff welfare, accountability and the long-term future of the Unity Schools system.
Until that happens, the reopening of schools nationwide will remain incomplete for the thousands of students enrolled in the 115 Federal Unity Colleges, whose classrooms remain closed at the start of the 2026/2027 academic session.
