The Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, has said that the success of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s education reforms depends on stronger collaboration between the Federal and State Governments and the adoption of data-driven decision-making across the education sector.
Speaking at the opening of the five-day Executive Retreat for Honourable Commissioners of Education, organised by the Committee of States’ Commissioners of Education (COSCEN), Alausa described education as Nigeria’s most important investment for economic growth, national security and sustainable development.
He said the Federal Government has shifted from assumption-based planning to evidence-based governance through the deployment of the National Education Data Infrastructure (NEDI) and the Digitalised Nigeria Education Management Information System (DNEMIS).
According to the Minister, the integrated digital platforms will provide real-time data on student enrolment, teacher deployment, school infrastructure and learning outcomes to improve planning, budgeting, monitoring and resource allocation.
“The future prosperity and competitiveness of Nigeria will ultimately depend on the quality of education provided to today’s learners,” Alausa said, urging state governments to embrace evidence-based planning and sustained collaboration.
He explained that the platforms would integrate education data from schools, local governments, states and federal institutions into a single interoperable system, improving transparency, accountability and service delivery.
The Minister also urged all states to complete their Annual School Census using the digitised platform, commending Kaduna and Borno states for making significant progress while encouraging other states to accelerate implementation.
Alausa disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Education has already deployed digital dashboards and smart boards to support evidence-based planning, with analytical support from the National Bureau of Statistics.
He further called on state governments to access the World Bank-supported HOPE Education Programme, which provides US$552 million in performance-based financing to states that meet agreed implementation milestones.
According to him, although all 36 states are eligible for the funding, many are yet to complete key requirements, including signing Subsidiary Loan Agreements, opening designated programme accounts and fulfilling mandatory data reporting obligations.
The Minister urged Commissioners to work closely with the Federal Ministry of Education and the World Bank to unlock the available resources for improving access to education, governance and learning outcomes.
To sustain ongoing reforms, Alausa proposed quarterly meetings of the Council of State Commissioners of Education to promote peer learning, monitor progress and strengthen accountability nationwide.
He also highlighted other priorities under the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI), including expanding access to affordable digital learning technologies, offline instructional platforms, digital learning resources and teacher support tools.
However, he cautioned against investing heavily in expensive smart school infrastructure without adequate provisions for maintenance and sustainability, stressing that quality teaching, effective instructional materials and conducive learning environments remain the most critical factors in improving learning outcomes.
The Minister reaffirmed that education is a shared national responsibility that transcends political differences and urged stakeholders to institutionalise reliable education data, strengthen accountability and invest consistently in human capital.
In his keynote presentation titled “Beyond the Tenure of Commissioners: Sustaining Education Reforms in the Era of Digital Disruption,” former Minister of Aviation and Chancellor of the Athena Centre for Policy and Leadership, Osita Chidoka, challenged Commissioners to implement reforms capable of outlasting political administrations.
Chidoka stressed that sustainable education reform requires policy continuity, reliable data, improved teacher development, accountability and long-term investment in learning outcomes.
Also speaking, the World Bank’s Senior Economist and Task Team Leader for the HOPE Education Programme, Shin Nomura, who represented the Country Director, Matthew Verghis, reaffirmed the Bank’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s education reforms.
He explained that the HOPE Education Programme, which became effective in March 2026, is designed to strengthen education governance, financing, teacher development, learning outcomes and education data systems through a performance-based financing model, while encouraging states to complete all requirements to access the available funding.
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