The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has disclosed that the Federal Government will conduct a comprehensive nationwide household survey to establish a more accurate figure for Nigeria’s out-of-school children, acknowledging that existing estimates no longer reflect the current reality.
Speaking on Wednesday at the 2026 Annual Education Summit of the Education Correspondents Association of Nigeria in Abuja, Alausa said the Federal Ministry of Education was partnering with the National Bureau of Statistics to generate reliable data that would guide policy decisions and interventions in the sector.
The minister admitted that the widely cited estimates of out-of-school children required updating, stressing that the government was committed to replacing assumptions with credible, evidence-based statistics.
According to him, “the nationwide household survey will provide a clearer picture of the magnitude and distribution of the challenge, enabling the government to design more targeted interventions to improve access to education.
Dr Alausa noted that although the government had succeeded in returning more than one million out-of-school children to classrooms over the past two years, obtaining accurate data remained critical to measuring progress and addressing the problem effectively.”
Estimates put the country’s out-of-school children at between 15million to about 20 million.
He explained that President Bola Tinubu’s administration was committed to evidence-based policymaking, stressing that access to accurate data should empower both the media and citizens to demand greater accountability from public office holders.
The minister said journalists must move beyond routine event coverage to investigative reporting that highlights gaps in the education sector and tracks government performance using verifiable evidence.
According to him, quality journalism backed by credible data would not only strengthen accountability but also improve education outcomes across the country.
Alausa also highlighted reforms being implemented under the Renewed Hope Agenda, including Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), digital transformation, quality assurance, improved education governance and expanding access to education.