The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has urged the Federal Government to increase budgetary allocation to the education sector to meet the UNESCO benchmark of 15 to 20 per cent.
Executive Secretary of TETFund, Sonny Echono, made the call on Tuesday while delivering the 13th Convocation Lecture of Nile University, Abuja.
Echono expressed concern that Nigeria currently allocates only about seven per cent of its national budget to education, a figure he said was inadequate to drive meaningful development in the sector.
He said increased funding was necessary to provide academic institutions with digital tools, modern laboratories and qualified personnel required to build a globally competitive workforce.
Speaking on the theme “Redefining the Nigerian Education System for the 21st Century Workforce,” Echono cited Rwanda and Kenya, which dedicate 18 per cent and 16 per cent of their national budgets to education, respectively, resulting in notable improvements in their systems.
He said Nigeria’s curriculum at all levels needed urgent reform, noting that current programmes, especially in secondary and tertiary institutions, do not reflect the demands of today’s labour market.
“To prepare Nigerian students for a rapidly changing global workforce driven by technology, automation and globalisation, the curriculum must integrate digital literacy, entrepreneurship and technical skills,” he said.
According to him, subjects such as data science, renewable energy technologies, artificial intelligence and financial literacy should be mainstream in schools.
Echono said despite the large number of graduates produced yearly, youth unemployment remains high because the education system is not aligned with the needs of employers.
He added that limited access to digital tools was also a major setback. According to the Nigerian Communications Commission, only 35 per cent of students had internet access in 2020 due to inadequate broadband infrastructure, especially in rural communities.
He said improving teacher training was essential, calling for a comprehensive professional development framework that would equip educators with modern pedagogical skills.
Echono maintained that strengthening funding, reforming curricula and expanding ICT access were critical to positioning Nigeria’s education system for the demands of the 21st-century workforce.
