The Nigerian Senate has passed the National Senior Secondary Education Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2026, for second reading, initiating a process to strengthen funding and oversight in public senior secondary schools. According to Punch, the legislation was approved during a plenary session on Tuesday, despite procedural objections regarding the availability of draft copies for lawmakers. The bill, sponsored by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, aims to amend the 2023 Act governing the sector to improve coordination and delivery of intervention programmes.
Premium Times reported that Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced the passage after the bill received majority support in a voice vote. The legislation proposes establishing education boards at state and Federal Capital Territory levels to bring government interventions closer to local communities. It specifically targets Federal Unity Colleges and military secondary institutions for direct support to address infrastructure gaps and shortages of learning resources. Following approval, the measure was sent to the Senate Committees on Primary and Secondary Education for further scrutiny and public hearings.
Bamidele argued that the amendments are necessary to address persistent deficiencies in school infrastructure and disparities in educational standards across states. He emphasized that effective implementation would require transparent allocation criteria and financial accountability. In a separate matter, the Senate also called on federal agencies to address erosion threatening the Bogoro community in Bayelsa State, urging the National Emergency Management Agency to provide relief materials.
The legislative move occurs against a backdrop of chronic underfunding in Nigeria's education sector. Premium Times cited a United Nations Children’s Fund report noting that the share of total spending allocated to education dropped from 9.3 per cent in 2015 to 3.6 per cent in 2023. This trend sits significantly under the international benchmark of 15 to 20 per cent. Additionally, assessments cited by the report indicated that nearly nine in ten pupils in Junior Secondary School 2 failed to reach basic mathematical proficiency in 2022.
Senator Adams Oshiomhole challenged the procedural steps, noting that lawmakers had limited access to draft texts for review. Other supporters, including Senate Chief Whip Mohammed Monguno and Senator Ahmad Lawan, expressed optimism that the reforms would improve curriculum delivery and make education more accessible nationwide. Lawan specifically called for the incorporation of technology and artificial intelligence subjects into the secondary school curriculum.