The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has mobilised over N100 billion in previously un-accessed matching grants to boost basic education across Nigeria. Executive Secretary Aisha Garba disclosed the figure Thursday in Abuja during a media luncheon with education correspondents. Under UBEC's 2025 to 2031 Strategic Blueprint, the commission has constructed 4,600 classrooms and renovated more than 6,100 others. It has also provided 2,780 toilets, 678 boreholes and over 334,000 pieces of school furniture nationwide.
Garba said UBEC, in collaboration with State Universal Basic Education Boards, supported the establishment of over 2,300 Early Childhood Care Development and Education Centres. More than 7.8 million instructional materials have been distributed to improve literacy and numeracy. Over N20.4 billion has been invested in teacher professional development, while initiatives like the Effective Schools Programme and strengthened School-Based Management Committees aim to improve accountability.
The commission is expanding digital literacy centres and promoting Artificial Intelligence, coding and robotics in schools. It is also advancing Open Schooling, Integrated Qur'anic and Tsangaya Education, girl-child education and inclusive education programmes to widen access. Garba said institutional reforms have improved transparency, project monitoring and data-driven decision-making. She urged the media to support UBEC through regular briefings, project visits and balanced reporting, stressing that education is a shared responsibility involving government, communities, teachers, parents and development partners. "Government can provide leadership and resources, but lasting transformation requires the collective commitment of communities, teachers, parents, development partners and the media," she said.
Aisha Garba leads a commission claiming to have unlocked over N100bn in un-accessed funds, yet offers no explanation for why such sums remained unclaimed for years. While 4,600 classrooms were built, the same system failed to access these grants until now, raising questions about past oversight. Teachers and students in underserved schools have borne the cost of this delayed action. The commission's current push for transparency sits uneasily with its silence on prior lapses.
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