Fixing the education sector for national productivity

In every successful economy, education is the bedrock of human capital development. It empowers individuals, reduces poverty, promotes civic participation, and drives long-term economic growth. In Nigeria, however, the education sector, the very engine of productivity, remains in a state of persistent crisis.

From outdated curricula and inadequate infrastructure to underpaid teachers, low digital penetration, and the highest out-of-school children rate in the world, Nigeria’s education sector reflects the wider dysfunction of national planning. The results are damning: a weak workforce, rising unemployment, and economic underperformance.

According to the 2024 UNICEF report, Nigeria now has over 12.3 million out-of-school children, an increase from 10.5 million just five years ago. Most of these children are concentrated in the Northeast and Northwest, where poverty, insecurity, and entrenched gender disparities exclude girls and children in rural areas from classrooms.

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, while other nations pivoted to virtual learning, Nigeria’s digital divide left millions of school-age children in rural and low-income communities completely cut off. Even in urban centres, only a fraction of schools had the infrastructure to deploy online learning. The 2020 pandemic lockdown effectively halted academic progress for a large portion of Nigerian children for over a year.

This glaring inequality reflects a deep systemic failure. It could be recalled that in 2020, the Federal Government slashed its Universal Basic Education (UBE) allocation by a shocking 54.25 percent, reducing funding from N111.7 billion to N51.1 billion. This decision, coming at a time when investment in digital education and school retooling was most needed, speaks volumes about the government’s misplaced priorities.

The Nigerian government has consistently failed to meet the UNESCO-recommended allocation of 15-20 percent of the national budget to education. In the 2024 federal budget, just 6.4 percent (N1.54trn) was allocated to education, a marginal improvement from 2023, but still grossly inadequate for a country with over 60 million school-age children and thousands of neglected educational institutions.

“Education must align with the demands of the modern labour market. Nigeria’s unemployment rate, though officially recalculated to 5 percent in Q1’2024, covers widespread underemployment and skills mismatch.”

Without urgent reform and sustained funding, the sector cannot support Nigeria’s economic goals. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported in 2023 that the education sector contributed just 1.6 percent to Nigeria’s GDP, a low figure given its foundational role in economic productivity.

Further compounding the problem are frequent industrial actions. In just the past three years, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other educational unions have embarked on multiple strikes, sometimes lasting months. These disruptions not only demoralise students and lecturers but also devalue the country’s tertiary education credentials in the global academic market.

The challenges in education are both about access and quality. Overcrowded classrooms, sometimes with teacher-student ratios as high as 1:83, especially in Lagos, Kano, and Kaduna, have made meaningful learning nearly impossible.

Private and non-governmental efforts like Teach for Nigeria, Digiterate, and Bridge Academies have attempted to bridge the gap by providing quality instruction in underserved communities, but their reach is limited. The solution lies in a deliberate and large-scale Public-Private Partnership (PPP) approach, backed by consistent government policy.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has noted that PPPs can significantly improve education delivery, especially in underserved communities. Such models offer a pragmatic path to expanding school infrastructure, digital access, and curriculum reform, provided they are transparently implemented and free from political interference.

Post-pandemic, global education has evolved. Nigeria must not be left behind. Blended learning, a combination of physical and digital instruction, is now standard in many nations. To compete in this new world, Nigeria must urgently invest in digital infrastructure in public schools, particularly in rural areas. This includes affordable access to devices, internet connectivity, teacher training in digital tools, and the adoption of a 21st-century curriculum that prioritises Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), financial literacy, and critical thinking.

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Education must align with the demands of the modern labour market. Nigeria’s unemployment rate, though officially recalculated to 5 percent in Q1’2024, covers widespread underemployment and skills mismatch. Many Nigerian graduates lack the technical and entrepreneurial skills needed for today’s economy.

This is why curriculum reform is non-negotiable. Core academic knowledge must be supplemented with technical-vocational education, digital fluency, communication skills, and innovation-driven learning. The government’s recently announced Renewed Hope Skills Initiative under the Federal Ministry of Education is a step in the right direction, but it must be followed with action and funding, not just policy statements.

Education is not just a sector; it is a national security issue, an economic strategy, and a moral responsibility. To fix it, Nigeria needs competent, visionary, and accountable leadership at every level, from local education authorities to federal policymakers.

State governments must also step up. Education is on the Concurrent Legislative List, and states like Ekiti, Lagos, and Ogun have shown that reforms can be initiated locally. However, many others continue to treat education as a political afterthought.

It is time that Nigeria recognised that without investing in human capital, all talk of economic diversification, industrialisation, and innovation will remain empty.

There is no shortcut to economic development without quality education. A literate, digitally skilled, and globally competitive workforce is the engine of productivity. If Nigeria is serious about escaping the cycle of poverty, insecurity, and underdevelopment, then fixing the education sector must become a top national priority, not just in words, but in budget, policy, and action.

Education is not charity; it is the most strategic investment a nation can make, and for Nigeria, that investment is long overdue.