The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has launched a comprehensive three-year reintegration plan aimed at drastically reducing the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria.
Spanning from 2025 to 2028, the initiative sets an ambitious target to reintegrate 10 million children into the classroom, addressing one of the most persistent challenges in the nation’s education sector.
Speaking at a two-day strategic retreat in Kano, UBEC Executive Secretary Aisha Garba announced the plan, which she described as part of a renewed push to ensure inclusive and equitable access to basic education across the country.
Garba stated, “The commission is setting a target to reduce the number of out-of-school children by 70 percent over the next three years. Our approach is holistic—tackling barriers to education, strengthening community-based support systems, and deepening collaboration between national and state education actors.”
She explained that the retreat was organised to take stock of achievements over the past six months and realign UBEC’s priorities in line with the Federal Government’s “Renewed Hope” agenda. “One of the key objectives of this retreat is to foster teamwork among UBEC and SUBEB staff and ensure alignment with national and state-level goals to deliver better educational outcomes for our children,” Garba added.
She also emphasized her commitment to reforming UBEC in line with ministerial directives, noting that the commission’s mandate is to achieve 100 percent access to education while improving learning quality.
Supporting the executive secretary’s remarks, UBEC Deputy Executive Secretary (Technical), Razaq Akinyemi, highlighted key achievements made in improving teaching and infrastructure.
He revealed that the commission has built over 3,700 classrooms, established 34 model and SMART schools, distributed more than 142,000 furniture units, and impacted over 181,000 learners through various interventions.
Akinyemi also noted that the Teacher Professional Development (TPD) programme has become a cornerstone for enhancing learning outcomes nationwide.
Kano State’s SUBEB Executive Secretary, Kabir Yusuf, commended UBEC for choosing Kano as the host state and praised the state government’s education-friendly policies. He cited multiple initiatives, including the free distribution of school uniforms and learning materials, classroom construction and renovation, and targeted efforts to reach nomadic communities.
Yusuf revealed that the Kano State government has approved N39 million for training 400 quality assurance officers, N35 million for school-based training, and N5 million for community mobilisation to boost school enrollment among underserved groups.
With this reintegration strategy, UBEC aims to drastically transform Nigeria’s basic education landscape and reclaim the futures of millions of children left behind.
