Today, October 5, marks World Teachers' Day, a celebration that carries extra weight this year as the Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers, the first international charter outlining what teachers deserve, turns 60. The charter, adopted by UNESCO and the International Labour Organisation in Paris in 1966, emphasizes fair pay, proper training, decent working conditions, and a real voice in education policy for teachers.
In Nigeria, the teaching profession faces numerous challenges, including delayed salaries and poor working conditions. Many teachers, particularly in state-owned universities, have gone on strike over unpaid salaries and promotion arrears. Lecturers in federal universities have also withdrawn their services due to incomplete monthly salaries. The situation is not limited to higher education, as primary and secondary school teachers also face similar challenges, with some owing as much as four months' salaries.
The Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) has identified poor remuneration, teacher shortages, underfunding, and insecurity in schools as significant threats to the profession. At its national delegates' conference, the union emphasized the need for improved welfare and working conditions for teachers. While the Federal Government has resumed payment of long-standing arrears to teachers in its colleges, some officers had waited nearly eight years for their payments.
The impact of these challenges extends beyond the teachers themselves, affecting students and the quality of education. The 2022 ASUU strike, which lasted for eight months, pushed back the graduation of countless students by a year or more. Every shutdown pushes another bright young person to a private university abroad or out of education entirely.
A communications practitioner notes that a crisis of trust has developed due to broken promises and unimplemented agreements. A signed agreement that is not funded is seen as a press release, not a policy. Each broken promise teaches unions that only strikes work and teaches citizens to ignore government announcements.
To address these challenges, several solutions have been proposed. These include making teacher pay a first-line charge, funding agreements before the signing ceremony, publishing the debt and a dated plan to clear it, and having governors own their universities.
Implementing these solutions requires political will and public pressure. The National Assembly and state assemblies can play a crucial role in ensuring that governments prioritize teacher welfare and education funding. By working together, it is possible to address the challenges facing the teaching profession and improve the quality of education in Nigeria.
Key points
- The Nigerian government owes teachers more than applause; it owes them fair pay, proper training, and decent working conditions.
- The 2025 FGN-ASUU Agreement aims to address some of the challenges facing teachers, but its implementation has been haphazard.
- Improving teacher welfare and education funding requires a collaborative effort from governments, unions, and citizens.
