President Muhammadu Buhari has presented the 2021 Appropriation Bill to the National Assembly, bringing concerns about the allocation to the education sector.

The education sector receives a meager 5.6% of the total budget, amounting to N742.5 billion out of N13.08 trillion. This percentage is Nigeria’s lowest education allocation in 10 years, despite persistent calls from stakeholders for increased funding to address the sector’s challenges.

The breakdown of the allocation reveals that N579.7 billion is earmarked for personnel costs, while N35.4 billion is allocated for overhead costs.

Furthermore, N127.3 billion is dedicated to capital expenditure, aiming to improve infrastructure and facilities in educational institutions. The federal ministry of education headquarters receives N65.3 billion, while Universal Basic Education, which supervises education at the primary and secondary levels, gets N77.6 billion. The proposed budget has passed through the second reading in the Senate, moving closer to approval.

However, Nigeria’s education sector has been poorly funded in recent years, falling below the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) recommendation. UNESCO advises governments to allocate 15-20% of their annual budgets to education, but Nigeria has consistently fallen short.

In the last decade, the highest education allocation was 10.7% in 2015, during former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration. Previous allocations include 9.3% in 2011, 9.86% in 2012, 10.1% in 2013, and 10.5% in 2014. The poor funding of the sector has contributed to the deplorable state of federal institutions, with many facilities in dire need of renovation.

Adeola Egbedokun, the Branch Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at Obafemi Awolowo University, criticizes the government’s “insensitive” allocation in the Nigeria budget 2021. Egbedokun notes the direct link between adequate funding and quality education, emphasizing that the current allocation is insufficient.

Hassan Soweto, an education rights campaigner, argues that the Buhari government prioritizes personal interests over education, fueling youth discontent and instability.

According to him, “The Buhari/ APC government, much more like its capitalist predecessors, does not have any interest in making quality education available. The consequence of that is what we are seeing with the youth restiveness”.

He also noted that the #EndSARS movement would gain more momentum and achieve greater success if its demands included adequate funding and quality education at all levels, thereby addressing a critical factor underlying the protests.

He says “That can only be achieved by struggle but also building a political alternative to end capitalism. If in the last decades Nigeria cannot fund the education sector well, then it is beyond individuals. It is a problem of the system and not the individuals.”

“Rather than going up, it has been nose-diving,” Mr Soweto lamented.

Soweto advocates for increased funding and quality education at all levels to address the country’s socio-economic challenges.