Human right lawyer, Femi Falana, slams Edo Okpebholo, libel charge against Natasha

…says millions of Nigerian children still out of school

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has accused several state governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) of undermining the constitutional and statutory rights of millions of Nigerian children by failing to access more than N97 billion in Universal Basic Education (UBE) intervention funds.

Falana, in a statement titled “Denial of Basic Education to the Children of Poor Nigerians,” said the refusal of many subnational governments to draw down available education grants from the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has deepened Nigeria’s already alarming out-of-school children crisis.

According to him, despite clear provisions of the Child’s Rights Act, 2003 and the Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act, 2004, which guarantee free and compulsory basic education for children of primary and junior secondary school age, many governments have failed to meet their legal obligations.

He noted that the Child’s Rights Act, enacted in 2003, provides for mandatory and free basic education for all children and has been domesticated across the 36 states of the federation, while the UBE Act reinforces the same obligation at the national level.

Falana explained that under the UBE funding framework, the Federal Government contributes a block grant equivalent to 2 per cent of its Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) to UBEC to support basic education nationwide.

However, he said state governments and the FCT are required to provide 50 per cent counterpart funding as a matching grant before they can access their share of the federal allocation.

According to the senior lawyer, as of March 2026, several states and the FCT had allegedly failed to provide the required counterpart contributions, thereby leaving over N97 billion in UBEC funds unaccessed.

He further alleged that even in cases where funds were accessed, some state governments failed to properly utilise them for the intended purposes, including the development of school infrastructure and the improvement of teaching and learning conditions in primary and junior secondary schools.

Falana said the situation has persisted despite a series of judicial pronouncements affirming the right of every Nigerian child to free and compulsory basic education.

He referenced judgments of both the ECOWAS Court of Justice and the Federal High Court, which, according to him, have repeatedly upheld the enforceability of universal basic education rights in Nigeria.

“Despite several judgments of the ECOWAS Court and the Federal High Court, which have upheld the right of every Nigerian child to mandatory and free universal basic education, Nigeria has about 20 million out-of-school children,” Falana said.

He blamed what he described as the country’s political elite for the worsening education crisis, alleging that the ruling class has effectively consigned the children of poor Nigerians to illiteracy and social exclusion.

“The members of the ruling class have consigned the children of poor citizens to illiteracy and ignorance,” he stated.

Falana disclosed that in a bid to confront the crisis, he had formally requested the Universal Basic Education Commission to provide information on the level of compliance by state governments with the provisions of the UBE Act.

According to him, UBEC has responded to the request, and the information supplied forms part of the basis of his public intervention on the matter.

The development comes amid growing national concern over Nigeria’s education deficit, with the country continuing to rank among those with the highest number of out-of-school children globally. (Nigerian Tribune)