The federal government has announced plans to abolish the policy separating the administration of Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) and Senior Secondary Schools (SSS), saying the system has failed to improve educational outcomes and contributed to the country’s growing secondary school dropout rate.
Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Tuesday during the inauguration of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) Ministerial Implementation and Monitoring Committee for Smart Schools, Bilingual Schools and Alternative Schools in Abuja.
According to a statement issued after the event, the minister said the government had concluded that the policy, which established separate management structures for junior and senior secondary schools, had not achieved its intended objectives.
Alausa explained that the arrangement had created avoidable administrative bottlenecks, weakened the transition of students from junior to senior secondary school and contributed to the increasing number of out-of-school adolescents across the country.
He said the Federal Ministry of Education would prepare a position paper for presentation to the National Council on Education (NCE), seeking approval to discontinue the policy.
“The federal government could now objectively conclude that the policy had not delivered the desired results,” the statement quoted the minister as saying.
The minister stressed that future education reforms should prioritise improved learning outcomes rather than creating additional layers of administration.
He expressed concern over the sharp decline in the number of students progressing from junior to senior secondary school, despite relatively strong enrolment at the junior level.
According to the minister, more than 20 million students are estimated to have dropped out before completing secondary education, describing the trend as unacceptable and one that requires urgent policy intervention.
Alausa directed relevant officials of the Federal Ministry of Education to expedite work on the proposal that will be submitted to the National Council on Education for consideration.
Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Aisha Garba, outlined the progress recorded under the federal government’s basic education initiatives.
Garba disclosed that 37 Smart Schools have been established nationwide, with 24 already operational and delivering academic activities, while the remaining schools are at different stages of completion and preparation for opening.
She also revealed that 30 schools have been established across nine states under the UBEC–Islamic Development Bank Bilingual Education Programme.
According to her, three boarding schools under the initiative have been completed and commissioned, while four others are substantially completed and awaiting inauguration.
The federal government reiterated its commitment to reforms aimed at expanding access to quality basic education, improving learning outcomes and ensuring that every Nigerian child has the opportunity to complete secondary education.
