The founder of Slum2School Africa has called for urgent reforms in Nigeria’s education system to ensure the country’s youth are equipped with quality learning and skills to thrive in a global economy.
The call was made during his convocation lecture at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), where he highlighted that Nigeria can only benefit from its youthful population if citizens are educated, healthy, and productively employed.
In his lecture titled “Maximising Nigeria’s Demographic Dividend through Urgent Education Reform for Global Competitiveness in the 21st Century,” he explained that the demographic dividend—a period when the working-age population exceeds the dependent population—is not automatic.
It can only be achieved through deliberate reforms in the education sector.
He noted that being globally competitive today means educating children not just to survive locally but to compete internationally.
“This means that every child we educate in Lagos will compete with a child in Boston, Massachusetts. It is no longer about titles, but competence,” he said.
The founder warned that Nigeria’s population could either become the nation’s greatest asset or a source of instability, depending on how the education system is structured.
To harness the country’s demographic advantage, he proposed a national education vision backed by law. His plan includes 15 years of compulsory education, transforming schools into centres of excellence, elevating teaching as Nigeria’s most elite profession, and standardising the national curriculum.
He stressed that Nigeria’s biggest weakness in education is not the lack of effort or policy documents, but the lack of continuity, coordination, and a legally protected national direction.
“We plan education on four- to eight-year political cycles, while education itself unfolds over generations. That contradiction quietly sabotages every reform attempt,” he said.
He added that a national education vision should not be written in Abuja alone but must involve national consensus from traditional councils, religious leaders, educators, labour unions, the private sector, and political leaders across party lines.
The founder also highlighted a major legal gap in the current education structure. While Nigeria moved from the 6-3-3-4 system to the 9-3-4 system, only the first nine years of education are compulsory and enforceable by law. Senior secondary education remains optional, underfunded, and weakly regulated.
“That legal gap alone already fractures our demographic future,” he said.
He concluded by stressing that the future of the nation begins in a primary classroom and urged stakeholders to value teachers, as they shape the future of every child.
He compared Nigeria’s teaching profession with global standards, noting that countries like Finland, France, and Portugal require advanced qualifications and strict selection for teachers, stressing the need for Nigeria to raise the status and standards of its teaching profession.
EduTimes Africa, a product of Education Times Africa, is a magazine publication that aims to lend its support to close the yawning gap in Africa's educational development.