President Bola Tinubu has emphasized his government’s commitment to significant improvements in the education sector during the 31st/32nd convocation ceremony of the Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna.
Speaking through the chairman of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Chinedu Nwajuba, President Tinubu highlighted the allocation of over N2.18 trillion to education in the 2024 budget. This, he stated, is an 80% increase from the previous year, making education the second-highest sectoral allocation in the 2024 budget.
The President underlined the aim of addressing challenges in the welfare of workers, infrastructure, and facilities to enhance teaching, learning, and innovation in the education sector.
Tinubu declared, “My administration is determined to ensure substantial improvement in the education sector. Pursuant to this, we are increasing funding for this critical sector, which is clearly demonstrated by our allocation of N2.18 trillion to the education sector in the 2024 Appropriation Bill, more than 80 per cent higher than the N1.29 trillion allotted in 2023.”
Highlighting the significance of the Student Loan Act, he mentioned that its implementation would commence in January 2024. The President expressed the expectation that this initiative would enable indigent students to stay in school, addressing the issue of dropouts that has been prevalent in the past.
Acknowledging the country’s security challenges, Tinubu mentioned the increased deployment of resources to address these issues, which, in turn, affects the availability of funds for other sectoral needs. He reassured that efforts would be made to maintain safe and conducive learning environments on campuses despite the prevailing security challenges.
