FG Targets Out-of-School Crisis with Activation of Smart Schools

The Federal Government has launched a renewed effort to address Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis by activating completed but non-operational Smart, Bilingual, and Alternative Schools nationwide. A ministerial implementation and monitoring committee has been inaugurated to ensure these facilities begin admitting learners.

Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, inaugurated the committee in Abuja on Tuesday, emphasizing that the initiative will ensure schools constructed under the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) become fully functional learning centers, particularly for children excluded from formal education.

This move aligns with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which aims to expand access to quality basic education and improve learning outcomes by ensuring that investments in education infrastructure translate into actual classroom teaching.

Dr. Alausa stated that the government would no longer tolerate completed school projects remaining locked or failing to serve their intended purpose.

“Infrastructure alone does not educate a child. A completed building without pupils is simply an empty structure. A furnished classroom without teachers remains an idle investment,” the Minister asserted.

He explained that despite UBEC’s significant investments in Smart, Bilingual, and Alternative Schools to expand access to basic education, implementation gaps have prevented many projects from achieving their objectives.

According to Dr. Alausa, the newly inaugurated committee will oversee the transition of these schools from completed infrastructure to fully operational institutions. This will involve completing outstanding works, facilitating handover, staffing, student enrollment, and continuous monitoring.

“Every day a completed school remains locked represents lost opportunities for thousands of Nigerian children,” Dr. Alausa

remarked. He added that the committee’s success would be measured not by reports produced, but by the number of schools actively teaching children.

Under this initiative, the committee will coordinate with state governments, State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs), and other stakeholders. Their responsibilities include ensuring schools are equipped with furniture, learning materials, and basic utilities such as electricity, water supply, and internet connectivity, while also facilitating teacher deployment and pupil enrollment.

UBEC introduced the Smart Schools program to modernize basic education through technology-enabled learning. These schools feature digital classrooms, internet access, interactive learning tools, and facilities designed to strengthen science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education while promoting digital literacy.

The commission also developed Bilingual Schools to improve learning through multilingual instruction and foster national integration. Alternative Schools were established to provide flexible education pathways for out-of-school children, girls, street-connected children, and other vulnerable groups unable to access conventional schooling.

Despite these investments, many facilities have remained underutilized due to delayed handover, inadequate staffing, and slow operationalization in some states.

The Minister described this situation as unacceptable, stressing that government spending on education must produce measurable results.

“Every classroom will count. Every school will function. Every investment will deliver value,” he declared.

Nigeria faces one of the world’s largest populations of out-of-school children, with millions of school-age children—particularly in rural and conflict-affected communities—still lacking access to formal education. Education experts consistently argue that addressing this crisis requires not only constructing new schools but also ensuring that completed facilities are fully operational, adequately staffed, and accessible to learners.

The Federal Government believes that activating Smart, Bilingual, and Alternative Schools will expand learning opportunities for vulnerable children, improve access to quality basic education nationwide, and strengthen accountability for public investments in the education sector.

The Minister directed the committee to immediately engage with UBEC, state governments, contractors, and other relevant stakeholders to accelerate the operationalization of these schools across the country.