Chief of Staff to the President, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has said that Nigeria’s public university system cannot deliver quality education under its current funding structure, citing the inadequacy of the N3.52 trillion allocation to the education sector in the 2025 federal budget.
Speaking as the guest lecturer at the maiden annual lecture of Osun State University in Osogbo on Tuesday, Gbajabiamila emphasized that both the Federal and State Governments lack the financial capacity to fund qualitative tertiary education if the existing approach to education financing remains unchanged.
Delivering a lecture on the theme, “Interrogating Funding of Education: Global versus Nigerian Perspectives,” the former Speaker of the House of Representatives described education as a fundamental right, not a privilege, but noted that Nigeria’s budgetary commitment to the sector falls far short of what is required to meet global standards.
“The current structure is unsustainable. If we continue on this path, neither the Federal nor State Governments can adequately fund public universities to deliver the kind of education the modern world demands,” he said.
Gbajabiamila further pointed out that persistent underfunding has been one of the major obstacles facing tertiary institutions in Nigeria, calling for bold reforms and innovative funding solutions to reposition the sector for global competitiveness.
