The federal government has imposed a 6-year ban on the establishment of new tertiary institutions including universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.
The National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-formal Education (NMEC) was fully reinstated as an independent commission by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) during its meeting on Wednesday, which was chaired by President Bola Tinubu.
The decisions were revealed to State House media by Tunji Alausa, the minister of education, who noted that the temporary ban on new tertiary institutions is intended to improve quality and guarantee sustainability across all current schools.
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“Today, access is not easy in the country. We have lots of tertiary institutions, both public and private. We need to help these private institutions be sustainable financially,” Alausa said.
“Today, we have about 56 million Nigerians that are illiterate. We can’t continue to have a high number of citizens that are illiterate,” Alausa said, adding that the commission would intensify outreach in rural areas through radio, television, public advocacy and community-based learning centres.
NMEC was established under Decree No. 17 of 1990 (later codified as Act No. 18 of 2004) by the military administration, with the formal commencement date of June 25, 1990.
The commission was established to function as the principal statutory authority in charge of developing, advancing, and putting into practice methods to fight illiteracy. It collaborates with non-governmental organisations and the federal, state, and local governments.
Recall that in 2025 alone, the National Universities Commission (NUC) approved 33 new tertiary institutions and universities across the country, bringing the total number to 309.
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