The Federal Government has announced plans to discontinue the policy separating the administration of Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) from Senior Secondary Schools (SSS), describing the reform as unsuccessful and a major contributor to the growing number of students dropping out before completing secondary education.
Minister of Education, Dr. Olatunji Alausa, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during the inauguration of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) Ministerial Implementation and Monitoring Committee for Smart Schools, Bilingual Schools and Alternative Schools.
Alausa said the disarticulation policy, which established separate management structures for junior and senior secondary schools, had failed to achieve its objectives and would be presented to the National Council on Education (NCE) for review and eventual discontinuation.
According to the minister, the policy has created unnecessary administrative bottlenecks and weakened the transition of students from junior to senior secondary education.
“I can objectively report today that the disarticulation policy has failed. You cannot continue creating separate management structures simply because you want to create positions. It is not right. It is about doing what is best for our education system,” he said.
He expressed concern that more than 20 million students expected to progress from JSS to SSS are dropping out before completing secondary education.
“We have no problem getting children into junior secondary schools, but transitioning them into senior secondary schools has become a major challenge. This is one of the policies we have to phase out,” Alausa added.
The minister directed officials of the Federal Ministry of Education to prepare a position paper for presentation to the National Council on Education to facilitate the policy change.
Speaking on the newly inaugurated Ministerial Implementation and Monitoring Committee, Alausa said its mandate is to ensure that Smart Schools, Bilingual Schools and Alternative Schools become fully operational and deliver quality education across the country.
He explained that the committee was established to complement, rather than duplicate, the responsibilities of UBEC by coordinating implementation, accelerating project delivery and addressing bottlenecks delaying completion.
“This committee is about implementation, delivery and results. It is not about meetings or reports. Its success will be measured by how many schools become operational and begin educating Nigerian children,” he said.
The minister directed the committee to oversee the completion of ongoing projects, installation of furniture and learning equipment, provision of electricity, water and internet connectivity, deployment of teachers and prompt admission of students.
He stressed that no publicly funded educational infrastructure should remain abandoned or underutilised.
“Every day a completed school remains locked represents lost opportunities for thousands of Nigerian children. Every abandoned project represents resources that are not yielding educational value,” he stated.
Alausa said the Federal Government aims to make all Smart Schools and Bilingual Schools operational before the end of the year, noting that similar implementation committees had successfully accelerated projects in federal universities.
He added that while UBEC has invested significant public resources in establishing Smart Schools, Bilingual Schools and Alternative Schools nationwide, the ministry is focused on measuring educational outcomes rather than simply recording project completion on paper.
The minister urged the committee to work closely with UBEC, state governments, State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs) and contractors to complete outstanding projects, provide learning facilities, ensure utility services, deploy teachers and facilitate student enrolment.
Earlier, UBEC Executive Secretary, Dr. Aisha Garba, said the Federal Government’s flagship basic education interventions had recorded significant progress.
She said the Smart Schools initiative is transforming basic education through the integration of digital technology, innovative teaching methods and modern learning tools, adding that effective monitoring is essential to ensure transparency, accountability and value for public investment.
According to Garba, 37 Smart Schools have been established across the country, with 24 already conducting academic activities, while the remaining schools are at various stages of completion and operational readiness.
She also disclosed that under the UBEC–Islamic Development Bank Bilingual Education Programme, 30 schools have been established across nine participating states, with three boarding schools completed and commissioned, while four others have reached substantial completion and are awaiting commissioning.
Garba further said the Alternative Schools Programme is expanding access to education for out-of-school children through flexible and inclusive learning opportunities.
She described the newly inaugurated ministerial committee as a strategic platform that would strengthen coordination among the Federal Ministry of Education, UBEC, state governments and other stakeholders, improve accountability and ensure that government investments result in fully functional schools delivering quality education to Nigerian children.
