Education
More troubles for Parents as schools raise fees
FG increases Unity Colleges tuition, UNILAG jacks up fees from N19,000 to N190,250
Private schools plan further hike, say 50% increment no longer realistic
Amidst escalating cost of living in the country, some educational institutions have announced significant increases in tuition and other fees, while others are planning to do so in order to cope with the effects of the removal of subsidy on petrol.
This is putting parents on the edge as the current academic session draws to a close for primary and secondary schools, while the calendar of tertiary institutions has been impacted by incessant strikes and crises.
On Friday, primary and secondary schools in Lagos and some other states brought the academic calendar to a close and some informed parents and guardians of pupils to prepare for a significant rise in fees when the next academic session begins in September.
Leading the school owners who had announced tuition fees increment was the Federal Government, which through the Federal Ministry of Education announced an upward review of school fees for new students into its secondary schools otherwise known as Federal Unity Colleges from N19,000 to N100,000.
This was contained in a directive from the office of the Director of Senior Secondary Education Department of the ministry with reference number ADF/120/DSSE/I, dated May 25, 2023, and addressed to all principals of Federal Unity Colleges.
According to the circular titled, ‘Approved fees/ charges for Federal Unity Colleges (1st term) for new students’, signed by the Director of Senior Secondary Education, Hajia Binta Abdulkadir, new students are expected to pay N100,000 instead of the previous N45,000.
The latest fee/charge increment will affect virtually all aspects and activities of the schools, including tuition and boarding, uniform, textbooks, exercise books, prospectus, caution fee, identity card, stationery, clubs and societies, sports, extra lesson and insurance, among others.
“Please be informed that the ministry has approved only the under-listed fees and charges for all Unity Colleges,” the memo read in part.
Similarly, the management of the University of Lagos, Akoka, reportedly increased the fees for undergraduates in the institution.
This was contained in a statement dated July 20, 2023, by the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, UNILAG branch, following a meeting with the top management of the institution.
The union said in the statement that fees would be increased for undergraduate students in the next academic session.
Students of the institution previously paid N19,000 for tuition, but the management has now fixed N190,250 for students studying Medicine, while for courses that require laboratories and studios are to pay N140,250.
According to SSANU, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Folasade Ogunsola, met with representatives of the three non-academic staff unions on Thursday to discuss issues concerning members’ welfare.
“During the meeting, the proposed fees for undergraduate students of UNILAG were disclosed. Students without lab and studio use will pay N100,750, those with lab use will pay N140,250 and the College of Medicine will pay N190,250,” the statement said.
The SSANU representative at the meeting, Rasaki Yusuf, however, asked for a rebate for staff members with children in the university, but the vice-chancellor insisted that the new charges were set nationally and could not be modified for specific categories of students.
Ogunsola, however, gave the option of staff paying in instalments but with a condition to pay up one month before final exams.
The UNILAG management later issued a statement confirming the development.
The statement said, “After careful deliberations with its stakeholders (students, parents/guardians, staff unions and alumni, among others), the University of Lagos Management has reviewed the obligatory fees (mandatory charges for an academic session/year) of new and returning undergraduate students of the university.
“The adjustment in fees, which will take effect from the first semester of the 2023/2024 academic session, is in view of the prevailing economic realities and the need for the university to be able to meet its obligations to its students, staff and municipal service providers, among others.
“It is also pertinent to note that the university has not increased its obligatory fees in recent years. Management, therefore, seeks the kind understanding and support of students and other stakeholders with the assurance of its commitment to ensuring that students get the best learning experience.”
Private school owners
The President, National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, Chief Yomi Otubela, said the removal of subsidy on petrol had hit the education sector hard and the effects would be felt more in the months ahead.
According to him, most private school owners are battling with the withdrawal of pupils and the resignation of teachers, who are increasingly finding it difficult to commute to school.
Otubela said, “We have so many parents who are withdrawing their children from school for their inability to meet up with the cost of transporting them to school or even paying the school fees. We have teachers who have tendered their resignation because their take-home pays can no longer take them home and back to school.
“We have instances where vendors, who supply one material or the other, have increased the cost of their materials. For instance, publishers have taken the cost of books from N25,000 to N65,000 for all books needed on average in all classes. We have instances where the use of technology is becoming obsolete because people can no longer fuel their generators and there is a limit to what the solar system can power.
“As it is now, we have a report of so many schools selling off their buses because the cost of patronising buses to parents has tripled and there is so much uncertainty as to what the actual price will be with the rising inflation. Generally, there is so much uncertainty within the private school sector. We consulted experts and all of them are beginning to see where many private schools will cease to exist and some will reduce the quality of education while looking for ways to weather the storm.”
“The uncertainty cannot make anybody predict the percentage of increase that might likely come up. All school management are in different meetings and retreats to ascertain how to mitigate the current situation. At the initial stage when subsidy was removed, about 40 per cent to 50 per cent increase in transport fares was advocated.
“But with the further increase in the pump price and the inflation in the open market, no one can determine the percentage increase now although the bill taken home by the students is showing 40 to 50 per cent, there may be a need to review that further in line with new fuel price and the escalating prices of goods and services.”
He called on the government to intervene in the private school sector and state-owned schools by introducing mass transit buses to be dedicated to pupils in nursery and primary schools.
Otubela explained, “One (bus) cannot be attached to a school, but it can be attached to a location that will make it easy for the pupils to trek to schools around the area. If this is done all over the country, it will ameliorate the cost of transportation.
“The government should also set up an education bank that will focus on giving revolving loans at single-digit interest rate to operators in the education sector, which are not school owners alone, but also educators, teachers, publishers, furniture makers, solar energy system providers, generator system providers, instructional materials’ providers and the likes to curtail the rising cost of provision of education.
“The government should sponsor the capacity building of teachers in state-owned and private schools. At least once in a term, there should be capacity building for all the teachers that will be fully sponsored by the Federal Government and this should be the criteria for people to remain in the teaching profession.”
Similarly, the Publicity Secretary of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools in Abuja, Paul Edoh, said parents should anticipate at least a 10 per cent hike in tuition fees from the 2023/2024 academic session.
He told one of our correspondents, “There has not been any official statement from the FCT and the local government chapters of the NAPPS with regards to the aforementioned, but schools in rural areas and some schools in the city centre have resolved that already; by September, there will be changes in school fees by the way of upward reviews to help balance the overhead cost and day-to-day running of the schools.
“Some local communities within the AMAC jurisdiction are considering a five per cent increment, while some are looking at 10 per cent, though there is no uniformity as per fee increment.”
Speaking on the challenges being encountered by private school owners, Edoh said, “Sure, you are aware of the current multiple taxes being experienced by school owners. The area councils are demanding taxes, the FCT Administration and the Federal Inland Revenue Service are asking for theirs. Don’t forget that the Department of Quality Assurance’s annual due is still there.”
On if parents had been informed about the proposed hike, he said, “Sure, written notes have been sent to them and some schools have even held PTA meetings on it too.”
The National President, National Parent-Teacher Association, Haruna Danjuma, did not respond to inquiries by one of our correspondents on the way forward for parents as of the time of filing this report.
A school proprietor in the Ibafo area of Ogun State, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it had become clear that private school owners would have to increase their fees in order to stay afloat, adding that the management of his group of schools had concluded plans to raise the tuition fees by between 10 per cent and 15 per cent.
Education
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Education
Nigerian Polymath Kamdi Okeke Graduates Summa Cum Laude, Secures Historic $442,044 Medical Scholarship in USA
Kamdi Okeke, 21, an international student from Nigeria on June 11, 2026, graduated summa cum laude (First-Class with Highest Distinction) from Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering.
This August, with a 3.95 GPA, a 521 MCAT, and rich background in community service, Biomedical and AI innovation, he is heading to medical school to pursue his MD. After recieving acceptances from five top-tier U.S. institutions – including the Ivy League’s Perelman School of Medicine at University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) – and a waitlist spot at Johns Hopkins, he is ready to begin his medical journey. His admission to UPenn comes with one of the most significant academic honors in the United States: the Perelman School of Medicine Twenty-First Century Scholars’ Award. This meritorious scholarship covers the full cost of tuition, fees and attendance for the four-year MD program – a testament to his status as one of the most promising medical students in the United States.
Okeke’s Award letter reads in part, “Congratulations!You have been selected to recieve the prestigious Twenty-First Century Scholars’ Award at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. This meritorious scholarship … provides 4 years of full tuition and fees for the MD program. Beyond its significant financial value, the award recognizes an applicant’s outstanding achievement and leadership across a variety of domains, including natural, social and behavioral sciences, arts and humanities, civic and global engagement, community service, and entrepreneurship. Receiving this award is also a testament to your future leadership potential within medicine and healthcare, which we look forward to developing further at Perelman School of Medicine. Our stellar faculty is committed to providing you with a comprehensive medical education that is enriched with myriad curricular opportunities and extracurricular experiences to help you attain all of your career goals … We are all here to support your medical education at the Perelman School of Medicine, and hope you will make Philadelphia your home for the next several years, if not beyond! … we look forward to the privilege of providing you with a superlative education within a phenomenal University community.”
This award, one of the most prestigious in global medical education, follows Okeke’s trajectory of excellence that spans two continents and multiple disciplines.
A Foundation of Excellence/COVID-19 Community Response in Nigeria
Okeke’s journey to the pinnacle of American medical education began in Enugu, Nigeria. A true polymath, he graduated top of his Spring of Life Secondary School class of 2021, recording historic performance with straight distinctions in WAEC/SSCE.
Earlier at 15, Okeke demonstrated leadership in community service during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 when he founded Youth Advocacy Against COVID-19 (YAAC) in Enugu. The initiative mobilized student volunteers to promote public health awareness through social media campaign on coronavirus containment.
The group also designed, produced and distributed protective face shields against Covid-19 infection. Speaking to a Nigeria national daily, The Sun, on 26 November, 2020, concerning the face shield project, Okeke explained, “We developed a cost-effective design for transparent face shields using Fusion 360 design software to create the visual representation of the face shield we wanted to make. Then, to keep our organization out of project pinch and have a proper project plan over time, we developed Gantt Charts, our project management tool, which assisted us in the planning and scheduling aspects of the projects, indicating the status of, as well as who is responsible for, each task in the project. We were thus able to effectively manage time and resources to maximize production. To fund the project, we emptied our piggy banks as we searched for, and procured, the materials for the production of the face shields: transparent film, 1.75mm thick foam, elastic bands, gum, adhesive tape, stapler machine, pins and other miscellaneous materials. After purchasing the first stock of the raw materials, we converted the family study into a makeshift workshop and production started.”
The group distributed more than 2000 protective face shields to healthcare workers and students across hospitals and schools in Enugu state, supporting frontline pandemic response efforts.
Awards at Drexel University
During his undergraduate studies in the US, Okeke’s tenure was marked by significant contributions to the scientific and entrepreneurial communities. He distinguished himself through academic excellence, innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership, earning multiple competitive awards. These include:
(i) Paul Scheffler Endowed Award: Recognition for “Outstanding Contribution” to his field of study – for two consecutive years, 2025 and 2026,
(ii) Baiada Institute Innovation Tournament — 1st place prize, 2024 – awarded for the most compelling startup concept and strongest presentation to the judging panel,
(iii) Spring Drexel Startups Fund Competition Winner, 2024 & 2026, granted to startups/ventures demonstrating exceptional ideas with clear value propositions, strong execution capabilities, and scalable business models,
(iv) Tau Beta Pi (TBP) National Engineering Honor Society Membership, 2024, recognizing students in the top eight percent of their engineering class,
(v) Dean’s List — winter 2022 to graduation
(vi) A.J. Drexel Scholarship and Drexel Grants: 2022 – 2026, in recognition of his undergraduate potential.
Research Work at University of Pennsylvania
Okeke participated in orthopedic research at the McKay Orthopedic Research Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania, where, besides contributing to develop wearable sensor algorithms quantifying real-world knee loading in veterans with osteoarthritis, he worked on biomechanics and rehabilitation studies investigating mobility during pregnancy, and tendon healing following injury.
His work contributed to ongoing studies aimed at understanding degenerative joint conditions and improving musculoskeletal health outcomes.
Meddibia: Bridging Healthcare Technology Gaps in Nigeria
As an intern working with modern Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems in U.S. healthcare settings, and worried by his own experience with paper-based medical record back home in Nigeria, Okeke identified an opportunity to improve healthcare equity in sub-Saharan Africa. He collaborated with two other partners in Meddibia, an AI-powered healthcare software startup, to develop Meddibia EMR (Electronic Medical Record) system tailored for low-resource environments of sub-Saharan Africa.
The platform digitizes paper medical records while maintaining functionality despite unreliable electricity and internet connectivity. The goal is to modernize healthcare documentation and improve patient access across sub-Saharan Africa.
The team emerged the top winner of the spring 2024 Drexel Startups Fund Competition hosted by the Charles D. Close School of Entrepreneurship.
Evaluating and highlighting its mission to digitize medical records in underserved regions, the Philadelphia-based Starter’s Review, a news outlet that covers broader Philadelphia startup landscape, on August 20, 2024, hailed Meddibia as “a beacon of hope for millions of people in developing countries.” It went further to write, “The Drexel community is proud to support these young innovators”.
WazobiaCode: Expanding Opportunities through Coding Education
Motivated by economic inequality he witnessed amongst his peers while growing up in Nigeria, Okeke led a multi-disciplinary team of Nigerian students in the U.S. who co-founded WazobiaCode, a nonprofit initiative dedicated to teaching programming skills to underserved youth across sub-Saharan Africa.
The organization launched a pilot online coding boot camp in Nigeria, aimed at equipping young people with marketable digital skills and improving their employment prospects. The initiative competed at the Drexel University Baiada Institute Innovation Tournament in the spring of 2024, and came tops. The award enabled the team to offer the pilot program in Nigeria, free of charge, to participants which equipped hundreds of Nigerian youth with digital skills.
Cofounding Xploit: AI Security Innovation
In November 2025, Okeke turned his attention to the burgeoning field of AI security. He co-founded Xploit, an autonomous cybersecurity tool designed to identify vulnerabilities in AI agents. The platform addresses emerging risks as businesses increasingly deploy AI systems capable of performing real-world actions using integrated tools.
The team developed Xploit as an automated red-teaming platform that simulates attacks on AI agents to detect weaknesses before malicious actors can exploit them. The startup first pitched at the
Startup-in-a-Weekend Hackathon hosted by The Foundry & Velric between November 21 to 23, 2025 in Philadelphia where it competed amongst over 100 entries and won the star prize in the “New Project Track” category.
Later, Xploit proved its worth at the Venture Building Hackathon in Philadelphia hosted, March 12 – 14, 2026, by United Effects Ventures (UEV), a pre-seed venture studio sponsored by JP Morgan, Nvidia and others.
Outperforming 15 other competing teams, Xploit secured the grand prize, with industry experts hailing Xploit’s pivot toward a “continuous red-teaming model” as the definitive future of AI vulnerability management, a promising solution particularly for small and medium-sized businesses lacking dedicated cybersecurity teams.
Lately, on June 9, 2026, Xploit got a further boost in the spring 2026 Drexel Startups Fund Competition where it won the star prize in funding, in addition to access to mentorship, incubation space in the Baiada Institute, and introduction to angel and venture capital funding from the University’s alumni network.
A Path toward Medicine and Global Impact
For Okeke, the upcoming move to medical training at UPenn is less of a pivot and more of a convergence. His work to date which sits at a rare and vital intersection – spanning biomedical research, automated AI safety platforms, and youth empowerment – reflects a deeply rooted commitment to leveling playing fields and democratizing technology.
His trajectory stands as a powerful testament to what is possible, offering a masterclass in global ambition for international students, demonstrating that a rigorous Nigerian secondary school education can serve as a launch pad to the highest echelons of the Ivy League. More than just a personal milestone, his story underscores the rising tide of Nigerian innovators shaping global academia, and the immense potential of tech-driven solutions to close worldwide healthcare disparities.
Ultimately, Okeke’s journey, stretching from distinction-strewn beginnings in Enugu to the historic halls of Ivy League medicine, embodies the true spirit of a modern polymath: versatile, resilient, and relentlessly excellent.
The management of Prince Abubakar Audu University (PAAU), Anyigba, has banned students from bringing personal cars and motorcycles, particularly Haojue, TVS and other commercial-style motorcycles, into the campus until further notice.
The decision is part of a series of stringent security measures introduced following the June 11 security breach that claimed the life of a 300-level Biochemistry student, David Ocholi Solomon.
In a notice signed by the Registrar, Mr. Siyaka Audu, the university said the measures were approved at the institution’s 401st Regular Meeting of the University Management Committee held on June 15, 2026, to strengthen security within and around the campus.
The management also prohibited the entry of tinted vehicles, vehicles with concealed number plates, and unregistered cars and motorcycles into the institution. Staff members with approved tint permits have been directed to register their vehicles with the Chief Security Officer (CSO).
As part of access control measures, the university announced that the main gate would serve as the only entry and exit point for vehicles, while all other gates would be restricted to pedestrian movement.
The management further directed the CSO to conduct a comprehensive registration and identification exercise for commercial motorcycle operators (okada riders) operating around the campus in collaboration with their union leaders. A speed limit of 35 kilometres per hour within the university environment will also be strictly enforced.
According to the notice, the institution plans to engage solar-powered tricycle operators to complement existing shuttle services and reduce reliance on motorcycles for transportation within the campus.
The university also made it mandatory for all staff and students to visibly display their identity cards while on campus, pending the completion of the ongoing ID card issuance exercise. Vehicle owners will be issued identification tallies, while the replacement of lost tallies will attract a fee of N5,000.
In addition, all visitors to the campus must undergo proper identification and security screening before gaining access. The management also disclosed plans to identify and block illegal routes leading into the institution to prevent unauthorized entry.
To enforce discipline, the university warned that any department or student found violating the existing ban on end-of-examination celebrations would face severe sanctions, including the cancellation of examinations written on the affected day.
Such examinations, the notice stated, can only be retaken during the corresponding semester of the next academic session after the payment of fresh school fees.
The management further revealed that the Kogi State Government is providing Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras and other security gadgets at strategic locations across the campus to enhance surveillance and crime prevention.
The university also reiterated that the suspension of all unauthorized student gatherings and social activities remains in force until further notice. Additionally, the use of cross-body bags has been prohibited as part of the enhanced security measures.
Management urged staff, students and other stakeholders to cooperate fully with the 11-member committee investigating the security breach and comply with the new directives in the interest of safety and stability.
Education
Ojukwu University: Soludo Inaugurates New Governing Council, Says Former Council Was Dormant
Ojukwu University: Soludo Inaugurates New Council, says former Council Dormant
By Okey Maduforo Awka .
Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra state on Thursday took a swipe on the immediate past Governing Council of Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Igbariam describing it’s dormancy as inexplicable.
To this end Soludo at the Light House Awka inaugurated a new set of Governing Council for the institution charging them to be alive to their responsibilities.
“You have a lot of heavy lifting to do,” the Governor stated. “I am confident that with the new leadership of the Council, you will provide nothing short of excellence. Work with the greatest level of integrity, conscientiousness, and passion.
Consider what is best for the university and the generations unborn; we are all birds of passage. What is important is, while you serve, what changed for the better? That is your guiding principle.”
Governor Soludo did not shy away from addressing the systemic challenges that necessitated this transition, noting that the preceding council had remained dormant for reasons he deemed “inexplicable.”
He expressed particular concern regarding the integrity of recent academic recruitment processes. “I got the full report. I had to do my own due diligence.
The Governor expressed full confidence in the new leadership to reverse these trends, stating, “With Professor Peter Onwualu as your Chairman and Pro-Chancellor, your problems are solved. Just get going. Take the university to realize its manifest potential. With the calibre of men and women of such knowledge, expertise, and ‘fire in the belly,’ you will succeed.”
Responding on behalf of the newly inaugurated body, Professor Onwualu affirmed the Council’s commitment to transformation. “This will be a different Council,” he assured.
“We intend to make COOU one of the top three state universities in the country. The problem of weak institutions is a Nigerian problem, but we will make COOU a very strong university. We covet the Governor’s support to make this happen.”he noted .
NSUKKA, ENUGU STATE — The management of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), has assured staff, students and parents of adequate security on campus, dismissing as false and unsubstantiated reports circulating on social media about an alleged impending terrorist attack and mass abduction of students.
In a statement issued on Saturday by the Acting Public Relations Officer of the university, Mr. Inya Agha Egwu, the institution said there was no credible security intelligence or verified threat supporting the claims contained in the viral social media post.
The university, however, disclosed that it had adopted additional precautionary measures to further strengthen security across the Nsukka campus.
According to the statement, personnel of the Nigerian Police Force and the Nigerian Army have been deployed to strategic entry points within the university to complement the efforts of the institution’s security unit.
Management also announced the temporary closure of some access gates to the campus to enhance monitoring and regulation of movement into and out of the university.
As part of the new security measures, motorcycle operations within the campus have been suspended with immediate effect. Only motorcycles belonging to authorised security personnel will be allowed beyond the university gates.
Staff members who use motorcycles for transportation have been advised to park them at designated locations outside the campus before proceeding to their offices.
The university urged members of the academic community to remain calm and continue their normal activities without fear, stressing that there was no known security threat to the institution.
It also cautioned against the spread of unverified information capable of causing unnecessary panic and anxiety among students, staff and the general public.
While reiterating its commitment to maintaining a safe environment for teaching, learning and research, the management encouraged students and staff to remain vigilant and promptly report any suspicious movement or activity to the University Security Department or relevant security agencies.
“Security is a collective responsibility, and the cooperation of all staff, students and stakeholders is essential in maintaining the peaceful and secure environment for which the University of Nigeria is known,” the statement said.
The university further advised the public to treat anonymous social media posts and unverified online messages with caution, particularly those containing sensational claims intended to generate fear and uncertainty.
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