Editorial note: This article was written as a review of events in Nigeria’s education sector in 2013. It reflects the information, controversies and public mood of that period. Some developments have since taken new directions, but the article remains a useful historical record of a turbulent year in Nigerian education.
The year 2013 could qualify as one of the worst years for Nigeria’s education sector in recent times, judging by the incidents that troubled the sector, including the loss of students, teachers and education activists.
Apart from violence, the sector experienced prolonged strikes, controversial reforms, political interference, corruption and other setbacks. Compared with the seriousness of these problems, the gains recorded during the year appeared limited.
This review groups the major events of 2013 under five headings:
Strike actions
Violence, deaths and destruction
Reforms, policies and politics
Initiatives and gains
Continuing challenges
Strike Actions
The year 2013 may be remembered as a year of strikes in Nigeria’s education sector.
Throughout the year, major unions at different levels of education either threatened or embarked on industrial action to draw attention to their demands. The most widely reported were the strikes by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP).
The ASUU strike began on 1 July 2013 and lasted for almost six months. It was suspended in December, only a few days before Christmas. The union demanded, among other things, the implementation of the agreement it had reached with the Federal Government in 2009.
Several negotiations failed to resolve the crisis. A major breakthrough came after President Goodluck Jonathan personally met with the union, leading to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding and the suspension of the strike. (premiumtimesng.com)
The ASUP strike was also called to address several problems affecting public polytechnics, including funding, staff welfare and working conditions. However, the crisis continued into 2014 without an immediate end in sight.
The Nigeria Union of Teachers also threatened a solidarity strike in support of ASUU. Although the nationwide action did not eventually take place, several state chapters of the union embarked on separate strikes for different reasons. Academic activities were disrupted in states such as Sokoto, Benue, Bauchi, Taraba and Edo.
As if the year could not end without another strike announcement, the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union declared an indefinite strike to begin in 2014. The union was demanding the implementation of an agreement reached with the Federal Government in 2010.
In summary, ASUU went on strike, ASUP remained on strike, different chapters of the NUT took industrial action, and COEASU announced another strike.
The overall result was that academic activities at almost every level of education were repeatedly disrupted.
Violence, Deaths and Destruction
Apart from the strikes, 2013 witnessed serious acts of violence that disrupted education and led to the deaths of students and teachers.
Much of the violence was concentrated in the North-East, but its effects were felt across the country. Boko Haram, which opposed Western education, was blamed for most of the attacks.
In July, armed attackers invaded Government Secondary School, Mamudo, in Yobe State. Students were attacked in their dormitories with guns and petrol bombs. Dozens of students and at least one teacher were killed, while some of the victims were burnt alive.
The attack led to the temporary closure of secondary schools in the state.
Barely a few months later, attackers invaded the College of Agriculture in Gujba, also in Yobe State. Many students were killed while sleeping in their dormitories, and buildings were set on fire. The institution was subsequently closed. (reuters.com)
There were other attacks on schools, teachers and students in the region. The insecurity forced many children out of school and made it increasingly difficult for teachers, examination officials and education workers to perform their duties safely.
Another tragedy occurred on 13 June 2013, when five executive members of the National Association of Nigerian Students died in a road accident.
They were travelling to Uyo to intervene in a crisis between students and the management of the University of Uyo following a violent protest at the institution.
Nigeria also lost Professor Festus Iyayi, an academic, writer and former president of ASUU, in another road accident.
He died in an accident involving a vehicle in the convoy of the Kogi State governor while travelling to Kano for an ASUU National Executive Council meeting. The meeting was expected to consider developments in the prolonged university strike. (premiumtimesng.com)
Although much of the violence and loss of life reflected the wider insecurity and poor road safety in the country, the education sector suffered greatly.
Students, teachers and education activists were killed, while classrooms, dormitories, offices and other facilities were destroyed.
Reforms, Policies and Politics
The year 2013 was also marked by controversial reforms and policies.
Among the most debated were the Osun State school reclassification programme, the dispute over the use of hijab in Lagos public schools and changes to the Basic Education Curriculum.
Unfortunately, many of the controversies surrounding these policies took on religious dimensions.
Osun State School Reclassification
As part of its education reforms, the Osun State Government introduced a new school structure involving the regrouping, renaming and merging of public schools.
The most controversial aspect was the merger of schools with different historical and religious backgrounds.
Some schools originally founded by Christian missions were merged with other public schools attended by children from different religious backgrounds. This led to protests over school identity, religious practices and the wearing of hijab by Muslim students.
The Osun State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria and some Christian groups opposed parts of the reform. Protests and disagreements led to tension and the temporary disruption of activities in some schools. (premiumtimesng.com)
Hijab in Lagos Public Schools
Another controversy concerned the wearing of hijab by Muslim students in Lagos public schools.
The state government maintained that students could not wear hijab as part of the approved school uniform, although it could be used during religious activities.
The decision caused dissatisfaction among Muslim students and organisations. Protests were held, and some Muslim groups described the policy as discriminatory and unacceptable.
The disagreement later became the subject of a long legal battle.
Changes to the Basic Education Curriculum
The revised Basic Education Curriculum also generated criticism, particularly over changes affecting Christian Religious Studies and Islamic Studies.
Some religious organisations feared that combining or restructuring religious and civic subjects would reduce the importance given to religious education.
The debate showed how difficult it could be to introduce education reforms in a religiously diverse country without creating suspicion among different groups.
Politics and the Ministry of Education
Politics also affected the education sector.
Professor Ruqayyatu Ahmed Rufa’i was removed as Minister of Education during a cabinet reshuffle in September 2013. Her removal came while negotiations over the ASUU strike were still ongoing. (vanguardngr.com)
The change in leadership created further uncertainty at a time when the sector required stability and focused negotiation.
Before leaving office, the minister had also supported stronger penalties for examination malpractice. The proposal attracted mixed reactions.
While there was general agreement that examination malpractice should be punished, some commentators argued that punishment alone would not address the poor facilities, weak teaching, pressure for certificates and other conditions encouraging malpractice.
Initiatives and Gains
Despite the controversies, violence and strikes, the education sector recorded some gains during the year.
One initiative that attracted national and international attention was Opon Imo, meaning “Tablet of Knowledge”, introduced by the Osun State Government.
The electronic device contained textbooks, lesson materials and examination resources for secondary-school students.
The project received a World Summit Award in the Learning and Education category in 2013 and was widely discussed as an early attempt to introduce large-scale digital learning in Nigerian public schools. (wsa-global.org)
The Federal Government also invested in the establishment of Almajiri model schools, particularly in northern Nigeria.
The schools were intended to combine traditional Qur’anic education with basic Western education and provide learning opportunities for children who might otherwise remain outside the formal school system.
The initiative recognised the need to improve access to education among Almajiri children. However, its long-term success depended on proper funding, community acceptance, trained teachers and continued maintenance by federal and state governments.
Continuing Challenges
Some of the challenges experienced in 2013 were not peculiar to the year.
They included poor infrastructure, examination malpractice, mass failure in public examinations and graduate unemployment.
Poor Infrastructure
Many schools continued to operate with overcrowded classrooms, inadequate furniture, poor sanitation, weak libraries and laboratories that were either poorly equipped or completely unavailable.
The shortage of facilities affected both teaching and learning.
Examination Malpractice and Poor Results
As in previous years, newspapers carried disturbing reports of poor performance in national examinations.
The repeated reports had become so common that they no longer surprised many readers. Yet, they remained a clear indication of deeper problems within the education system.
Examination malpractice also continued, encouraged by pressure from parents, students and schools to obtain good results at all costs.
Graduate Unemployment
Unemployment remained another major challenge.
The education system continued to produce graduates who struggled to find work. Some remained unemployed because opportunities were limited in their areas of study, while others were described by employers as lacking the skills required in the workplace.
It became common to see employers demanding several years of work experience from applicants who had only recently graduated.
This raised questions about the relationship between the school curriculum, practical training and the needs of the labour market.
Conclusion
The year 2013 was certainly turbulent for Nigeria’s education sector.
Prolonged strikes disrupted tertiary education, violence claimed the lives of students and teachers, religious controversies affected school reforms, and many long-standing challenges remained unresolved.
There were a few encouraging initiatives, particularly in digital education and efforts to provide schooling for Almajiri children. However, these gains were overshadowed by the scale of the crises affecting the sector.
Unless the concerns of teachers and other education workers were properly addressed, there was every possibility that the strikes of 2013 would be repeated in 2014 and later years.
Unfortunately, many of the problems identified in this review were not resolved at the end of the year.
Update: Looking Back from July 2026
Looking back, the fears expressed in this article were justified.
Strikes continued to disrupt tertiary education in later years, including another prolonged nationwide ASUU strike in 2022. Attacks on schools also spread beyond the North-East to parts of the North-West and North-Central regions.
UNICEF reported in 2024 that more than 1,680 children had been abducted in conflict-related incidents during the previous decade, while at least 180 children had been killed in attacks on schools. (unicef.org)
Some developments from 2013 also produced lasting effects. The debate over hijab in Lagos public schools eventually reached the Supreme Court, while digital-learning initiatives became more common, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The year 2013 should therefore be remembered not only as a difficult year, but also as an early warning of problems that Nigeria’s education sector would continue to face for many years.
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