Nigerian government considers compulsory levy for students in primary, secondary schools

The Nigerian government on Thursday argued for the payment of compulsory levy by students in primary and secondary schools across Nigeria.

The levy was debated on Thursday at the 63rd ministerial session of the National Council Education (NCE).

The approval for the levy was initially contained in the communique from the session but was later expunged.

The compulsory annual development levy would have been N500 for primary school pupils and N1000 for secondary school students across the country, if approved.

According to the initial draft of the communique, the funds would be paid into a dedicated account called “Development Levy Account”.

At the session on Thursday, a delegate who did not introduce himself, said the introduction of the levy negates the mandate of free education as stated in the UBEC Act 2004.

In his reaction, the Minister of State for Education, Anthony Anwukah, said the issue of the development fee by students will go through policy stages as the council deliberates on strategies and ways to increase funding.

– Premium Times