Former Vice-President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has criticised the Federal Government’s proposed N50,000 examination fee for candidates sitting the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and National Examinations Council (NECO) examinations from 2027, warning that it could deny millions of children from poor and middle-income families access to education.
Atiku described the policy as economically insensitive, arguing that it comes at a time when Nigerians are grappling with rising inflation, soaring food and transportation costs, higher electricity tariffs and widespread unemployment.
He warned that increasing the cost of qualifying examinations would worsen Nigeria’s already high number of out-of-school children and further limit access to tertiary education, especially for academically qualified students from low-income backgrounds.
According to him, rather than introducing policies that make education more expensive, the government should be expanding educational opportunities by increasing admission capacity and removing financial barriers. He maintained that making examinations less affordable would only deepen inequality and deprive many young Nigerians of the opportunity to pursue higher education.
Atiku added that the proposed fee hike, alongside increased fees for federal unity colleges, amounts to a systematic exclusion of the children of the poor from the country’s educational system.