The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa says education will remain the driving force behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision of building a one trillion-dollar Nigerian economy.
Special Adviser to the Minister on Media and Communications, Ikharo Attah disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
Alausa said the administration was deliberately repositioning Nigeria’s education sector to produce a globally competitive workforce capable of meeting the country’s development needs while supplying highly skilled professionals to Africa and the international labour market.
According to him, the Federal Government was transforming Nigeria’s youthful population into a demographic dividend by expanding access to quality education and equipping young people with the knowledge and skills required to thrive in an increasingly competitive global economy.
“We want to be the manpower supplier of the world. We need to produce competent, skilled and educated young Nigerians who will drive our economy, contribute to Africa’s growth and compete successfully across the world”, he said.
The Minister informed that one of the administration’s major interventions had been the aggressive expansion of admissions into health-related programmes to address longstanding shortages of critical professionals.
He disclosed that annual enrollment into nursing schools had increased from about 20,000 students before the current administration assumed office to approximately 50,000 students, while admissions into medicine, pharmacy and dentistry had also been significantly expanded.
Dr. Alausa expressed confidence that the reforms would, within the next few years, eliminate the shortage of healthcare professionals as thousands of newly trained graduates enter the workforce.
He attributed the progress to President Tinubu’s unwavering commitment to education, describing it as the bedrock of Nigeria’s economic transformation and a strategic pillar of the administration’s development agenda.
“As the President advances his vision of building a one trillion-dollar economy, education will remain at the centre of that transformation,” he stated.
The Minister also assured Nigerians that the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has been deliberately structured on a sustainable financing model capable of supporting generations of students.
He explained that President Tinubu had consistently directed ministers and heads of government institutions to ensure that every major reform introduced by the administration is designed to endure beyond the lifespan of the present government.
“There is no value in introducing policies that cannot stand the test of time. Sustainability is central to this administration’s philosophy, and that principle guided the design of NELFUND,” he said.
