Tinubu Highlights Education Reforms, ₦372bn Student Loans and ₦110bn Medical School Investment
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has highlighted his administration’s achievements in the education sector, saying more than ₦372 billion has been provided in student loans through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
Tinubu said the loans were provided to cover institutional fees and students’ upkeep, as part of efforts to ensure that financial difficulties do not prevent young Nigerians from completing their education.
The President made this known in a statement highlighting his administration’s education reforms and investments under the Renewed Hope agenda.
Reflecting on his personal experience as a young man in the United States, Tinubu said "When I first arrived in the United States as a young man, I drove a taxi to earn money for my education. I even had to postpone starting school for several months to save enough.
When I eventually got to Chicago, I worked different jobs to support myself and pay my way through university. I know what it means to worry about tuition, accommodation and how to make ends meet while pursuing an education."
He explained that he had to postpone starting school for several months to save enough money before eventually attending university in Chicago.
According to him, those experiences shaped his belief that every Nigerian child should have access to quality education, regardless of their background or financial circumstances.
Tinubu also disclosed that the government's technical and vocational education programme had received more than 2.8 million applications.
He said 38 technical colleges had been rehabilitated, while students in federal and selected state technical colleges were benefiting from free tuition, boarding, textbooks and uniforms.
On university education, the President announced that a new agreement had been reached with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), providing for a 40 per cent increase in academic staff remuneration and measures aimed at improving stability in the university system.
He said his administration was committed to ensuring that students complete their academic programmes within the expected period.
“A four-year course must take four years,” Tinubu said, stressing that Nigerian students deserve to graduate on schedule.
The President further disclosed that his administration was investing ₦110 billion in the rehabilitation of 24 medical schools across the country.
He added that annual nursing enrolment had increased from 28,000 to 115,000, while medical and dental enrolment had risen from 5,000 to 12,000.
Tinubu said the government was working to expand Nigeria’s capacity to train more doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals locally.
On basic education, he said more than one million children who were previously out of school had returned to learning.
He also listed teacher development, increased educational opportunities for girls and the introduction of a new national curriculum that restores Nigerian History to classrooms among the administration’s priorities.
The President commended the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, and other members of the education team for their efforts.
He also announced the introduction of an interactive A–Z guide to the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI), designed to provide information about government reforms, programmes, achievements and opportunities in the education sector.
Tinubu urged parents, students and teachers to visit the initiative’s website to explore available opportunities and support programmes.
He also encouraged Nigerians to report challenges affecting education in their communities, saying public feedback would help the government identify and address problems.
The President maintained that education remained central to his administration’s development agenda, adding that a child’s circumstances at birth should not determine the limits of their ambitions.