President Bola Tinubu has recalled how he worked as a taxi driver and took up other jobs to finance his education in the United States, saying the experience has shaped his commitment to expanding educational opportunities for Nigerian children.
Sponsored Ads
Tinubu made this known in a post on his X handle on Wednesday, explaining that he delayed starting school for several months to save enough money before moving to Chicago, where he worked different jobs to support himself through university.
Sponsored Ads
He said his experience gave him an understanding of the difficulties students face in paying tuition fees, securing accommodation and meeting other expenses while pursuing their education.
The President added that every Nigerian child deserved equal educational opportunities, irrespective of their background or their parents’ financial circumstances.
Tinubu described education as a major priority of his administration and cited the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), through which he said more than ₦372 billion had been provided in student loans to cover institutional fees and upkeep.
He also disclosed that the government’s technical and vocational education programme had received more than 2.8 million applications, while 38 technical colleges had been rehabilitated.
According to him, students in federal and selected state technical colleges now benefit from free tuition, boarding, textbooks and uniforms.
On university education, Tinubu said his administration had reached a new agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), providing for a 40 per cent increase in academic staff remuneration and measures to improve stability in the country’s universities.
RELATED STORIES
Related Posts
He added that the government was committed to ensuring that students completed their programmes within the stipulated time, stressing that a four-year course should not take longer than four years.
Tinubu further disclosed that the Federal Government was investing ₦110 billion in the rehabilitation of 24 medical schools, while annual nursing enrolment had increased from 28,000 to 115,000.
He also said enrolment in medical and dental programmes had risen from 5,000 to 12,000, noting that Nigeria needed to strengthen its capacity to train more healthcare professionals locally.
The President added that more than one million children who were previously out of school had returned to classrooms. He said his administration was also investing in teacher development, expanding educational opportunities for girls and implementing a new national curriculum that restores Nigerian history to classrooms.
Tinubu commended the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, the Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, and other members of the education team for their efforts in implementing the administration’s reforms.
He urged Nigerians to explore the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative through an interactive A–Z platform developed by the Ministry of Education, saying it would provide information on government programmes and opportunities available to parents, students and teachers.
He also encouraged citizens to report challenges affecting education in their communities, explaining that feedback would help the government identify and address gaps in the sector.
Tinubu maintained that education was central to the country’s journey towards reform, opportunities and shared prosperity, adding that a child’s circumstances at birth should not determine the limits of their ambitions.
He said his administration still had more work to do and remained committed to improving access to education across the country.
Comments are closed.