20,000 schools, 907,769 classrooms needed to absorb Nigeria’s out of school children —UBEC

The Universal Basic Education Commission {UBEC} has said that Nigeria needs an additional 20,000 schools and 907,769 classrooms in order to absorb the growing number of out-of-school children in the country.

This was disclosed in a statement by the Director of Press of the Federal Ministry of Education, Ben Goong, on Tuesday.

According to the statement, the Executive Secretary of UBEC, Hammed Boboyi, gave the statistics when he briefed the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, on his agency’s activities.

According to the statement, the Minister of Education, Professor Mamman, however, gave “strong indications that his administration will prioritize basic education in the Country, emphasizing that the foundation level is the most critical segment in the sector which must be properly developed to impact positively on other tiers of the sector and overall national development.”

Goong disclosed that the Minister stated this on Tuesday in his office in Abuja, in continuation of his briefing sessions with parastatals and agencies under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Education.

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He further revealed that Prof Mamman used the occasion to call on all states of the Federation to show greater commitment towards providing counterpart funding to accelerate the development of basic education in the country.

The minister, according to the statement, added that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that every Nigerian child is brought on board the ship of education.

Prof also noted that the forthcoming National Census will put paid to the controversies surrounding the actual figures of out-of-school children.

In his briefing earlier, UBEC Executive Secretary, Dr. Boboyi identified infrastructural gaps and inadequate manpower as some of the challenges facing the Commission in its efforts towards ensuring equitable access to quality basic education.”

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