El-Rufai asks principals to stop collecting fees from ALL primary/secondary students in Kaduna

Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna, has directed that free primary and secondary education be implemented in the state with immediate effect.

Phoebe Yayi, permanent secretary for the state ministry of education, announced the development in a letter dated January 17 and addressed to the zonal director of the Kaduna state schools quality assurance authority.

The governor earlier announced free and compulsory education for every child in the state up to the secondary school level when he presented the state’s 2020 budget to the state house of assembly.

In 2018, he declared free education for all female students in public secondary schools in the state.

Of the N259.25 billion signed into law, capital expenditure on education and health constitutes N75.44bn of the entire N184.1bn capital budget.

“Sequel to the public pronouncement made by the governor of Kaduna state on different occasions on the government’s resolve to ensure 100% access to basic and post-basic quality education by all pupils and students of school age in the state irrespective of gender, physical, social or economic status, the government introduced numerous strategies to ensure this is achieved,” the letter read.

“You may, therefore, wish to be informed that one of the measures taken by the present administration effective from the year 2020 is the complete abolishment of any form of fees in whatever name being paid by students in our schools.

“In view of the above, you are requested to direct all the principals under your zone to stop the collection of all forms of fees with immediate effect.”