Vice President Kashim Shettima has announced that Nigeria’s education budget has risen to ₦3.52 trillion in 2025 under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, up from ₦1.54 trillion in 2023. Speaking through his Special Adviser on General Duties, Dr. Aliyu Modibo Umar, at the 2025 Nigeria Education Forum in Abuja, the Vice President described the growing number of out-of-school children as a national emergency and called for urgent collaboration between government and the private sector.

He noted that Nigeria has reached a point where government-only funding can no longer sustain the education sector, stressing the need for innovative and resilient financing models. The Vice President urged private sector players, industry leaders, alumni bodies, philanthropists, and communities to co-invest in laboratories, research centres, vocational hubs, innovation clusters, and endowment funds to strengthen the system and make education more accessible and competitive.

Senator Shettima highlighted major funding increases under the Renewed Hope Agenda, including the rise of TETFUND to ₦1.6 trillion in 2025, the release of ₦92.4 billion in UBEC matching grants to states and the FCT, and the disbursement of ₦86.3 billion to over 450,000 students through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). He stressed that safe schools, well-trained teachers, and strong cooperation across federal, state, and local governments remain critical to solving Nigeria’s learning crisis and securing the nation’s future.