Teacher Crisis: 32 Million Nigerian Pupils Share 592,077 Teachers

 

By Abdulahi Musa 

Nigeria’s public education system is facing a severe teacher-capacity crisis, with 31,827,244 learners relying on 592,077 teachers, translating to a national learner-teacher ratio of 53.8 to one.

The figures are contained in data from the Federal Ministry of Education’s Digital Nigeria Education Management Information System, obtained on Monday. The data shows that, on average, one teacher is responsible for nearly 54 learners in Nigeria’s public schools.

The situation is significantly worse in some states, with Kano recording the highest learner-teacher ratio at 88 to one, followed by Katsina at 87.4 to one and Imo at 82.2 to one.

The education census recorded 108,016 public schools, although only 84,177 schools submitted data, representing a 77.9 per cent reporting rate.

The teacher shortage is compounded by inadequate classroom infrastructure. The 592,077 teachers are serving learners across 394,836 classrooms, resulting in a national learner-classroom ratio of 60.1 to one. The average public school also caters for about 296 learners.

Kano, Katsina, Imo Worst-Hit

Kano recorded the highest learner population, with 5,226,239 learners and a learner-teacher ratio of 88 to one. Its learner-classroom ratio stood at 91.7 to one.

Katsina followed with 1,920,270 learners and a learner-teacher ratio of 87.4 to one, while its learner-classroom ratio was even higher at 107 to one.

Imo, with 1,243,543 learners, recorded a learner-teacher ratio of 82.2 to one and a learner-classroom ratio of 75.7 to one.

Other states with high learner-teacher ratios included Jigawa at 72.8 to one, Kaduna at 72.7 to one, Abia at 72 to one, Bauchi at 69.7 to one and Kebbi at 63.5 to one.

Wide Disparities Across States

The data also revealed significant disparities in teacher availability across the country.

Cross River recorded the lowest learner-teacher ratio in the supplied data at 13.6 to one, although its reported learner population was only 8,168. Enugu recorded 17.1 to one, while Ekiti stood at 18.4 to one.

Other relatively low ratios were recorded in the Federal Capital Territory at 18.7 to one, Anambra at 23.9 to one, Delta at 23.2 to one, Bayelsa at 25.2 to one, Benue at 30.5 to one and Akwa Ibom at 31.5 to one.

The figures indicate that Nigeria’s teacher crisis is not only about the overall number of teachers but also their distribution in relation to learner populations and classroom demand.

NUT Raises Alarm

The latest figures come amid repeated warnings from the Nigeria Union of Teachers over the shortage of qualified teachers in public schools.

According to the NUT, a Universal Basic Education Commission survey identified a shortage of 194,876 teachers in public primary schools across Nigeria.

NUT President, Audu Amba, described the situation as alarming and warned that the shortage could negatively affect the quality of education and learning outcomes.

He called on governments to employ the right number and quality of teachers, while the union also linked difficulties in attracting and retaining teachers to issues surrounding welfare and remuneration.

The report clarified that the NUT’s figure of 194,876 refers specifically to public primary-school teacher requirements, while the Federal Ministry’s figure of 592,077 covers the broader public-school teaching workforce. Therefore, the two figures should not be directly subtracted from one another.

Public Schools Carry Greater Burden

The data further showed that public schools carry a significantly larger share of Nigeria’s learners.

Of the 40,125,105 learners covered in the ownership breakdown, 31,827,244, representing 79 per cent, were enrolled in public schools, while 8,297,861 were in private schools.

Despite having roughly the same number of schools as the private sector, with 108,016 public schools compared with 107,017 private schools, public schools accommodate almost four times as many learners.

The situation highlights the need for increased recruitment, improved teacher welfare and more equitable deployment of teachers to areas with the highest learner populations.

With Nigeria seeking to improve foundational learning and reduce learning poverty, the figures suggest that simply recruiting more teachers may not be enough. Ensuring that teachers are properly distributed to schools experiencing the greatest pressure will also be critical to improving the country’s education system.