Tuition waiver of one year moved by the House of Representatives, urging the federal government to waive tuition fees for a year for learners enrolled at tertiary institutions run by the federal government.
Nigeria's House of Representatives is urging the federal government to waive tuition payments for a year for learners enrolled at tertiary institutions run by the federal government.
State governments were also encouraged by the legislators to follow suit with a comparable scheme, in order to ease the economic strain on households.
Specifically, the lawmakers are asking for a one-year waiver of tuition fees for eligible students at federally owned higher institutions, such as polytechnics, universities and teacher-training colleges, as well as any others in that category.
Mr Satomi Ahmed sponsored the motion that carried the request during plenary.
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He further asked both federal and state authorities to see to it that the relief scheme runs for a fixed period and is reviewed from time to time, and that it is implemented without harming how good, how accessible and how sustainable higher education remains in the long term.
In addition, the motion asked the Government to set up a suitable funding arrangement that would repay participating institutions for any tuition income they verifiably lose, so that their day-to-day running, the welfare of their staff and their academic standards are not put at risk by the programme.
Tuition Waiver: The Role of Governors
The chamber also urged every state governor to roll out a comparable one-year scheme, easing the cost of fees for deserving students at universities and polytechnics owned by the states, as well as teacher-training colleges, though each governor was asked to keep the relief within what their own state's finances can bear.
Mr Ahmed, who moved the motion and spoke first in the debate, contended that reforms by the Nigerian Government, such as scrapping the fuel subsidy together with other changes to fiscal policy, have driven living costs up steeply and left families under severe financial pressure.
“Mindful that soaring prices for food, transport, housing, power and other basic necessities have made it ever harder for mothers, fathers and other carers to cover the schooling costs of the young people in their care;” Worried that numerous undergraduates and other learners in the country's colleges of education, polytechnics and universities could abandon their courses, postpone their studies or endure prolonged hardship because their families are unable to settle tuition and other mandatory institutional levies.
Lawmakers Warn Against Cost of Schooling Effects
The lawmakers also cautioned that the cost of schooling could push up unemployment, fuel social unrest, widen inequality and swell the ranks of Nigeria's youths who drop out before finishing their education.
According to him, the House accepts that schooling is a vital tool for building the nation, cutting poverty, enabling people to move up in society and readying youths for productive work.
" Believes that a temporary, targeted and properly funded tuition relief programme would provide immediate support to students and their families while the country continues to implement its economic reform agenda," it said.
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The legislators urged the Federal Government to team up with the appropriate education authorities and the governing bodies of institutions to determine which tuition fees and mandatory academic levies should qualify for relief, all the while keeping the process open and accountable.
The motion argues that the scheme should give particular priority to pupils from low-income homes, families uprooted from where they lived, and other at-risk groups, ensuring that help reaches those who are suffering most under today's economic difficulties.
Adoption of the Motion
After the House adopted the motion, it instructed its Committees on University Education, Polytechnics and Higher Technical Education, Federal Colleges of Education and Alternative Education to consult the Federal Ministry of Education, the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Budget Office of the Federation and other agencies with a stake in the matter. The goal is to produce a practical plan for putting the scheme into effect, one that sets out who qualifies, how much money is needed, and how progress will be tracked and reported.
