The federal government has imposed a six-year ban on the establishment of universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
At its meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday, the federal executive council (FEC) also restored the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-formal Education (NMEC) to its full status as an independent commission.
Tunji Alausa, minister of education, relayed the resolutions to State House correspondents, noting that the temporary freeze on new tertiary institutions is aimed at strengthening quality and ensuring sustainability across existing institutions.
“Today, access is not easy in the country. We have lots of tertiary institutions, both public and private. We need to help these private institutions be sustainable financially,” Alausa said.
He cited figures from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), stating that over 2.3 million candidates applied for admission last year, while fewer than 228,000 secured placements in public universities.
The minister expressed concern over Nigeria’s literacy crisis, saying Tinubu granted full independence to NMEC after its chairman presented an “expansive agenda to educate over 50 million young adults in the next two to three years, and to make them digitally literate”.
“Today, we have about 56 million illiterate Nigerians. We can’t continue to have a high number of illiterate citizens,” Alausa said, adding that the commission would intensify outreach in rural areas through radio, television, public advocacy, and community-based learning centres.
