Urgent Call for Educational Reform in Nigeria by Prof. Othman

In his column published in Blueprint Newspaper on March 18, 2026, Prof. M.K.

Othman discusses Nigeria's challenges in achieving greatness, particularly through human capital development. He identifies significant deficiencies in the education and healthcare systems, as evidenced by Nigeria's Human Capital Index (HCI) score of 0.36 reported by the World Bank.

Othman critiques the current educational policies, highlighting issues such as poor funding, inadequate teacher quality, and weak institutional accountability. He argues that merely increasing access to education is insufficient; there must be a qualitative transformation in learning outcomes.

Othman emphasizes the importance of a meritocratic system and the need for systemic reforms to create an enabling environment for human capital development. He notes that the success of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's vision for education will depend on coherent policy coordination, sustained funding, and rigorous monitoring.

Othman concludes by urging policymakers and stakeholders to engage in meaningful action to address these pressing challenges.