The Federal Government has announced plans to institutionalise the National Learning Assessment (NLA) every three years as part of efforts to address learning poverty and improve the quality of education across the country.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Friday after monitoring the ongoing 2026 National Learning Assessment in selected public and private schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The minister visited Government Secondary School, Kuje; Junior Secondary School, Kuje Central; and Topaz Model School, Kuje, to assess the exercise.
Alausa said the assessment, which covers pupils in Primary Three and Primary Five, as well as students in Junior Secondary School Two (JSS II) and Senior Secondary School Two (SSS II), is designed to evaluate literacy, numeracy and cognitive skills.
He said the exercise would become a routine national assessment conducted every three years, adding that the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) had been directed to make budgetary provision for it from 2029.
“The importance of the learning assessment is that it enables us to determine whether pupils and students at the primary, junior secondary and senior secondary levels are acquiring the knowledge and skills expected of them.
“It is a standard tool for evaluating the quality of education being delivered across the country.
“The last assessment was conducted in 2023 by UBEC, while the previous one was carried out in 2019 by the Federal Ministry of Education. Going forward, it will be institutionalised every three years,” he said.
The minister said the assessment had become necessary in view of Nigeria’s learning poverty challenge, noting that previous data indicated millions of children were unable to read age-appropriate texts by the age of 10.
According to him, earlier reports estimated that more than 42 million Nigerian children were classified as learning poor, although the figures were based on outdated data.
He expressed confidence that ongoing reforms in the education sector would improve learning outcomes, adding that the assessment would provide updated data to support evidence-based policymaking.
“We need reliable data to benchmark literacy and numeracy levels across the country and design targeted interventions that will improve learning outcomes,” Alausa said.
He added that the Federal Government had harmonised several learning assessment frameworks into a single national system to ensure consistency and enable comparisons of learning outcomes over time.
According to the minister, the initiative forms part of the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative and aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s education reform agenda.
Alausa also commended private schools for complementing government efforts to expand access to education, saying they had helped keep many children in school who might otherwise have dropped out.
He, however, stressed the need for stronger regulation to ensure compliance with minimum education standards.
“Private schools play an important role in expanding access to education. We must continue to support them while ensuring they meet the required standards,” he said.
The minister also praised the learning environment in the schools visited, describing them as clean, conducive and supportive of effective teaching and learning.
Also speaking, the Mandate Secretary of the FCT Education Secretariat, Dr Danlami Hayyo, said more than 120 public schools had been renovated under the administration of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
Hayyo said the rehabilitation covered classrooms, boarding facilities and sanitation infrastructure, adding that the FCT Administration remained committed to supporting the Federal Government’s efforts to improve the quality of education.
He pledged the administration’s continued collaboration in implementing the outcomes of the National Learning Assessment to improve learning achievements among pupils and students.
