Senate in plenary (CREDIT: Godswill Akpabio Facebook page)
The bill seeks to provide direct government intervention to address infrastructure deficits and shortages of learning resources in public senior secondary schools across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The Senate on Wednesday passed a bill to amend the National Senior Secondary Education Commission Act to increase government funding for federal unity colleges and armed forces senior secondary schools, and to strengthen their administration.
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The upper chamber passed the amendment after consideration of a report by its Committee on Education (Basic and Secondary), presented by Orji Kalu on behalf of the committee chairman, Usman Adamu.
The Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, who presided over the session, announced the passage of the bill after it received majority support through a voice vote.
The amendment, an executive bill sponsored by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, passed second reading in October before being referred to the committee for further legislative consideration, including a public hearing.
The bill seeks to provide direct government intervention to address infrastructure deficits and shortages of learning resources in public senior secondary schools across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
It also provides for direct government funding, subject to clear operational guidelines and effective coordination between the National Senior Secondary Education Commission and other relevant authorities.
In addition, the amendment modifies Section 23(1)(b) of the existing Act, which provides for the composition of state education boards. Under the amended provision, one member will be appointed from each of the three senatorial districts in every state, with at least one of the three representatives being a woman.
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Committee’s report
Presenting the committee’s report, Mr Kalu, a former governor of Abia State, said the committee conducted a public hearing on the proposed amendment, which was attended by representatives of the Federal Ministry of Education, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS) and other stakeholders.
He said the committee considered and harmonised the submissions made by stakeholders during the hearing before recommending the passage of the bill.
The committee consequently urged the Senate to approve the proposed amendments.
After the report was presented, Mr Jibrin dissolved the Senate into the Committee of the Whole, where lawmakers considered and adopted the proposed amendments clause by clause.
Nigerian public senior secondary schools at a glance
The proposed amendment comes at a time when concerns about inadequate funding, dilapidated infrastructure, shortages of instructional materials, and uneven learning outcomes in Nigeria’s public secondary schools persist.
Although the federal and state governments have introduced policies and institutions to improve access to quality education, many public schools still struggle to provide conducive learning environments, adequate teaching resources, and the skills needed to prepare students for further education and employment.
A recent report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Public Finance for Basic Education in Nigeria, identified chronic underfunding as a major factor contributing to poor access to education and weak learning outcomes. The report said government expenditure on education declined from 9.3 per cent of total government spending in 2015 to 3.6 per cent in 2023, well below the international benchmark of 15 to 20 per cent.
The report also highlighted significant learning gaps among children enrolled in school. In 2022, 86 per cent of pupils in Junior Secondary School 2 did not attain minimum proficiency in mathematics, according to assessments cited by UNICEF and the Universal Basic Education Commission.
In June 2025, the Executive Secretary of the National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), Iyela Ajayi, said inadequate funding was limiting the commission’s ability to address infrastructure deficits, shortages of instructional materials and gaps in human-resource development. He said the commission had yet to receive the statutory allocation of at least two per cent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund provided for under the National Senior Secondary Education Commission Act, 2023.
The Act established the commission to prescribe and enforce minimum standards for senior secondary education and provide federal intervention to address infrastructure gaps in Federal Unity Colleges, the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. It also provides for a dedicated fund to support school infrastructure, instructional materials, laboratory equipment, teacher development and other educational needs.
Controversy over concession of federal unity colleges
The debate over how best to finance and manage public schools generated controversies in September following the federal government’s decision to concession the management of King’s College, Lagos, to its Old Boys Association.
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The proposed arrangement triggered opposition from education workers and parents, who raised concerns about the implications for public ownership, government funding, staff welfare and the future management of the country’s Federal Unity Colleges.
The dispute escalated when the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) directed its members to boycott the resumption of schools for the new academic session, while parents and guardians also opposed the arrangement. The industrial action disrupted the reopening of Federal Unity Colleges nationwide.
The disagreement centred on the government’s plan to transfer responsibility for financing, rehabilitating, modernising, operating and maintaining King’s College to the Old Boys Association under a concession agreement. The Federal Ministry of Education had directed the handover following the conclusion of the agreement, with a transition committee expected to oversee the process.
The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, maintained that the arrangement did not amount to the sale of the school. He said the federal government would retain legal ownership and oversight of the institution and ruled out plans to sell or concession other Federal Unity Colleges. The government also assured stakeholders that the arrangement would not result in increased school fees beyond the applicable federal policy or the loss of teachers’ jobs.
However, the assurances did not immediately resolve the dispute. Following discussions between the government and organised labour, implementation of the concession was put on hold for a review of the agreement. In late September, the ASCSN suspended its industrial action to allow a seven-member committee, including labour representatives, to review the concession document and address workers’ concerns.