The President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Comrade Lucky Emonefe has called on President Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly to increase the budget for education in the 2024 federal budget proposal.
During a Citizen’s Town Hall meeting on the 2024 Budget and Appropriation Process by the House of Representatives, Emonefe also called for the inclusion of students in the execution of the 2024 education budget.
He noted that the Federal Government had allocated about N2.18 trillion for education in the 2024 budget proposal. According to him, “this figure represents 7.9 per cent of the total N27.5 trillion budget proposal for education. It is on this premise that I am calling on the Federal Government to reconsider education and allocate more funds to it.
“The problems facing the education sector are enormous, and urgent intervention is needed to prevent a complete loss of its standard”.
Emonefe also urged the National Assembly to enact necessary laws that would enable students to participate in monitoring the execution of the education budget to assess its impact on their respective institutions.
He explained that students’ inclusion in monitoring the budget’s execution is essential so that they are aware of the remaining funds for the current year and can participate in preparing the following year’s budget, thereby ensuring that the education sector is not left in limbo, as it has been in the past.
He admonished various Ministries, Department and Agencies that are typically involved in education matters, emphasizing that it cannot be business as usual. He advised them to tighten their belts and prepare to work positively for the growth of Nigeria’s education sector”.
