Nigeria’s education crisis deserves greater national attention, according to Ambassador-designate Reno Omokri, who has argued that the large number of children outside the formal school system represents a bigger long-term challenge than insecurity.
Omokri made the position during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics on September 13, 2026, while discussing the performance of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. He acknowledged the country’s security challenges but maintained that keeping millions of children out of school could have deeper consequences for Nigeria’s future.
His comments come as the Federal Government intensifies efforts to return children to classrooms. The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, said earlier in September that more than one million out-of-school children had returned to school over the preceding 20 months.
Omokri’s argument places education at the centre of Nigeria’s development debate, rather than treating the issue solely as a social-sector concern.
The ambassador-designate said the country’s large out-of-school population should be viewed as a major national problem because children who miss education face reduced opportunities to acquire literacy, skills and qualifications needed to participate productively in the economy.
He also said the Tinubu administration was taking steps to address the problem, presenting the government’s education interventions as part of a broader effort to improve human capital.
The argument comes amid continued concern over the relationship between poverty, insecurity, displacement and school attendance, particularly in northern Nigeria.
UNICEF currently reports that about 10.5 million Nigerian children aged five to 14 are not in school, while describing education access as a major national challenge. The agency also notes that conflict and insecurity have disrupted learning in parts of the northeast.
Nigeria’s education challenge is not driven by a single factor. Poverty, displacement, insecurity, social and cultural barriers, inadequate infrastructure and limited access to quality education all contribute to children remaining outside the formal school system.
UNICEF says the North faces particularly severe attendance challenges, with poverty and socio-cultural factors affecting participation. In conflict-affected Borno, Yobe and Adamawa, millions of children require education-in-emergencies support.
The consequences extend beyond the classroom. A UNICEF assessment of children in Nigeria warns that children who remain out of school face greater exposure to harmful child labour, abuse and possible recruitment by non-state armed groups.
This creates an important link between education and security: while Omokri presented the two issues as competing priorities, evidence indicates that poor access to education can itself worsen some of the conditions associated with insecurity.
The Federal Government has pointed to recent progress in its efforts to tackle the education gap.
Education Minister Tunji Alausa said on September 8 that more than one million children previously outside the school system had returned to classrooms within 20 months.
According to the minister, government interventions had also reached nearly 6.7 million girls with programmes designed to improve school access and retention. He called for a balanced approach that would sustain gains in girls’ education while giving greater attention to boys.
The ministry has identified six priority areas under its education reform programme:
- Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)
- Reintegration of out-of-school children
- Education data and digitalisation
- Girl-child education
- Quality assurance
The government is also working with UNESCO on teacher development, vocational education, digital transformation and the reintegration of children who have dropped out of school.
Although Omokri argued that out-of-school children constitute Nigeria’s more fundamental problem, the country’s education and security challenges cannot easily be separated.
Conflict has displaced communities and disrupted schooling in several northern states. UNICEF estimates that 2.8 million children in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa need education-in-emergencies assistance.
At the same time, education deprivation can increase vulnerability among children and young people. Nigeria therefore faces a cycle in which insecurity disrupts schooling, while prolonged exclusion from education can deepen poverty and social vulnerability.
Recent initiatives reflect this connection. In April, UNICEF and the European Union launched a programme targeting more than 25,000 conflict-affected children in Sokoto State, including children in internally displaced persons’ camps and host communities. The programme includes accelerated learning for out-of-school children and remedial support for those already enrolled.
Omokri’s intervention has therefore reignited a wider question about how Nigeria should define and prioritise its national development challenges.
Security remains an immediate concern because violence, kidnapping, terrorism and displacement can directly threaten lives and economic activity. But education determines the capabilities of the next generation and can influence employment, productivity, social stability and the country’s long-term development prospects.
The scale of the education problem also requires careful interpretation. Different organisations and government sources use different age brackets and definitions when calculating the number of children who are out of school. UNICEF, for example, currently cites about 10.5 million children aged five to 14, while a 2026 JAMB publication referenced an estimate of approximately 20 million out-of-school children based on UNICEF and UNESCO Institute for Statistics figures.
The key issue, regardless of the estimate used, is the number of Nigerian children who remain without consistent access to formal education.
For Nigeria, the immediate task is not simply to increase enrolment figures but to ensure that children who return to school remain there and acquire meaningful skills.
That will require sustained investment in teachers, classrooms, learning materials, vocational training, school safety and reliable education data, particularly in communities affected by poverty and conflict.
Omokri’s comments have placed the out-of-school children crisis firmly within the national policy conversation. The government’s reported progress in returning more than one million children to classrooms provides an indication of movement, but the continuing size of the education gap means the challenge remains substantial.
Nigeria’s ability to convert school enrolment into quality learning and productive opportunities could ultimately determine how effectively it addresses both its human-capital deficit and some of the conditions that fuel insecurity.
Source/context: Channels Television interview; Federal Ministry of Education statements reported in September 2026; UNICEF Nigeria education and humanitarian data.
