Kaduna State has slashed tertiary school fees by as much as 50%, a move officials say has brought more than 200,000 children back to the classroom and could serve as a model for the rest of Nigeria.
Governor Uba Sani announced the reforms at the KADA EduPACT International Summit, which drew global education leaders to Kaduna in July. Officials said the fee reduction — such as at Kaduna State University, where tuition dropped from ₦150,000 to ₦105,000, and Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, which fell from ₦100,000 to ₦50,000 — has boosted enrolment and helped families keep children in class.
Nigeria has more than 20 million out-of-school children, according to official figures, while recent West African examination results showed only 38% of candidates passed — the poorest outcome in five years.
The summit, themed “Strategic Visioning for Educational Transformation,” called for national adoption of Kaduna’s approach, including greater investment in vocational skills and digital learning. UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, a keynote speaker, said education reform was vital to fight poverty and insecurity.
Kaduna currently devotes nearly 30% of its budget to education — double the national average — raising questions about whether other states can match its pace.
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