The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on University Education, Habubakar Fulata, has called for an increase in the salaries of primary, secondary, and university teachers in Nigeria. Fulata believes that primary school teachers should earn a monthly salary of at least N250,000, secondary school teachers should earn N500,000, and university lecturers should earn a minimum of N1 million.
Speaking at a One-Day National Stakeholders’ Workshop on the Development of a Roadmap for the Nigerian Education Sector (2023-2027) in Abuja, Fulata stressed the importance of adequately paying teachers to motivate and encourage them in imparting knowledge to students.
In addition to salary increments, Fulata highlighted the need to translate all subject textbooks into local languages. He argued that using local languages as the language of instruction would help Nigeria catch up with the rest of the world in terms of educational development.
Fulata acknowledged that previous administrations had made efforts to improve the education sector in the country, but these efforts had not yielded the desired results. He emphasized that the language of instruction has always been the local language in most countries. For example, in the UK, education is taught in English, while in France, it is taught in French.
According to Fulata, teaching subjects like Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry in local languages can help Nigerian children better grasp these concepts and enhance their educational performance. He argued that textbooks for these subjects should be translated into local languages to facilitate effective learning.
Fulata stressed that a state of emergency in education should be declared in Nigeria. He called for the allocation of at least 25 to 30 percent of the national budget to the education sector to address the current challenges and ensure quality education for all.
The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, acknowledged that the ministry had developed comprehensive policies for the education sector, but these policies were not effectively meeting the needs of the Nigerian people. He expressed the need for a roadmap that would bridge the gap between policy implementation and developmental outcomes.
Mamman emphasized the importance of timely implementation of the roadmap, as instructed by President Bola Tinubu. He also noted the issue of producing graduates who are not employable and stated that this situation cannot continue. Mamman pledged to engage state governments in efforts to transform the education sector.
The Minister of State for Education, Dr. Yusuf Sununu, stressed the need to integrate gender mainstreaming in the roadmap to achieve a balanced education system in Nigeria. Sununu recognized the importance of education for national development and lamented the current lack of tangible results in terms of the benefits of education.
He highlighted the need to address the disconnect between the purpose of education and its actual outcomes, as well as the growing disinterest in education due to the lack of employment opportunities for graduates. Sununu called for measures to ensure that Nigerian education aligns with the realities of everyday life and provides tangible benefits to individuals and the nation as a whole.
The push for higher salaries and educational reforms by representatives like Fulata aims to improve the education sector in Nigeria and ensure that teachers receive adequate compensation for their significant contributions to the development of the country’s future generations.
