Allocate more funds to improve education in Nigeria – TETFund to FG, ,
Nigeria must strive to meet the UNESCO recommendation of allocating 15%-20% of its national budget to education against the 7% it was currently working with.
This is according to the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sonny Echono during a speech at the 13th Convocation Lecture for the Nile University, Abuja on Tuesday.
Echono also insisted that the government and all key stakeholders in the sector need to improve the funding for education to ensure that academic institutions are adequately equipped with digital tools, state- of -the- art laboratories and qualified instructors.
Speaking on the theme, Redefining the Nigerian Education System for the 21st Century Workforce, Echono cited examples of countries such as Rwanda and Kenya who allocate 18% and 16% of their national budgets to education, resulting in significant strides in their educational development.
He noted that the Nigerian education curriculum at all levels required a significant overhaul to meet the needs of the global labour market.
“Current curricula, especially at the secondary and tertiary levels, do not reflect the job market demands of the 21st century. Aligning Nigeria’s education curriculum with global labour market demands is crucial for preparing students for the future workforce, which Is increasingly shaped by technological advancements, automation, and globalization.
“The Nigerian curricula should integrate digital literacy, entrepreneurship education, and technical skills across all education levels. Subjects such as data science, renewable energy technologres, artificial intelligence, and financial literacy should be common in secondary and tertiary institutions”, he said.
Echono said despite Nigeria churning out thousands of graduates annually, youth unemployment continues to rise, leading to high underemployment, social unrest, and associated economic challenges. The missing link, he said was an education system that was grossly misaligned with the requirements of the modern labour market.
To reverse this, he said, “the promotion of the integration of ICT in our education delivery to expand digital literacy across Nigeria is essential for future-proofing the Nigerian education system. According to the Nigerian Communications Commission (2022), only 35% of Nigerian students had access to Internet services in 2020, due largely to the lack of broadband infrastructure in the rural areas”.
According to Echono, for Nigeria’s education system to be rightly positioned for the 21st century workforce, the country needs to institute a comprehensive professional development framework whereby the teachers are empowered with the relevant skills and resources necessary for modern pedagogy.
Allocate more funds to improve education in Nigeria – TETFund to FG
, Education – Daily Post Nigeria, November 18, 2025, 4:09 pm
