School Resumption Shock: Parents Face 40% Fee Hike as Rising Fuel Costs Threaten Children’s Return to Class
With the resumption of primary and secondary schools for the new academic session, parents in Nigeria are now being hit hard by the rising cost of education, especially in private schools, which have increased tuition by as much as 30-40 per cent.
Checks by Vanguard showed that some schools have increased tuition considerably. One secondary school in Ipaja, Lagos, hiked its school fees from N86,000 to N124,000 per term, while another school in Egbeda raised the fees from N250,000 to N320,000 per term.
In addition, parents are facing increased transportation expenses due to recent fuel price increases. Some school owners are looking at the school bus rates and others have discontinued the use of school buses due to the high cost of fuel and maintenance.
One Lagos school owner has reportedly stopped running its school bus service, forcing parents to drive their kids to school or board a bus.
Parent groups have expressed concern about the development. National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Deolu Ogunbanjo said families were having difficulties paying school fees, books and other education related costs. He urged private schools to limit fee increases to 20 per cent.
But Lagos State National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools President, Yusuf Alaka, said the increase in fees was due to the rising operational costs of the schools, which include salaries, maintenance, rent, taxes and unpaid fees payable by parents.
The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has also called on parents to not pull their children out of school due to financial problems.
The Federal Ministry of Education has also said that Federal Unity Colleges will resume on 14th September 2026, contrary to the report of three weeks postponement.
