A renewed push to deploy real-time data in shaping education policy could mark a turning point in Nigeria’s efforts to tackle its out-of-school crisis, according to former aviation minister Osita Chidoka. In a reflection on the recent National Stakeholders Meeting on the National Education Data Infrastructure, convened by the Minister……
A renewed push to deploy real-time data in shaping education policy could mark a turning point in Nigeria’s efforts to tackle its out-of-school crisis, according to former aviation minister Osita Chidoka.
In a reflection on the recent National Stakeholders Meeting on the National Education Data Infrastructure, convened by the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, Chidoka described the initiative as potentially one of the most consequential national infrastructure projects in recent years.
He argued that while physical infrastructure such as roads, buildings and airports can be deferred, lost years in education often have permanent consequences.
“The road we fail to build today can still be built tomorrow… but the child pushed out of school by policy failure is often lost forever,” he said.
Nigeria is estimated to have about 15 million out-of-school children, with many missing what Chidoka described as a “narrow window” for education that may never reopen.
At the centre of the discussions was the Nigeria Education Management Information System, developed by Ernst & Young, which aggregates nationwide data on enrolment, school infrastructure and student-teacher ratios into a single, accessible platform.
Chidoka said the system’s ability to present complex data in a clear and comparable format allows policymakers to confront realities that may otherwise remain obscured.
Two key data points stood out during the session, he noted.
The first was a significant drop between primary school enrolment and junior secondary school attendance, raising concerns about what happens to pupils transitioning between Primary Six and JSS One.
“A generation appears to thin out between those two rungs,” he observed, calling for urgent investigation into the causes of the attrition.
The second was the composition of candidates sitting for the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examinations, particularly the ratio of first-time applicants to repeat candidates. The data, he said, highlighted a severe admission bottleneck in Nigeria’s tertiary education system.
“Too many qualified young Nigerians are queuing behind the same narrow gate, year after year,” he said, adding that the insight helped him better understand the government’s policy direction on expanding admission capacity.
Chidoka emphasised that credible data does more than inform policy—it challenges assumptions and compels evidence-based decision-making.
He also highlighted his involvement with the Nigeria Research and Education Network (NgREN), which has committed to improving digital connectivity in tertiary institutions this year, with plans to extend similar infrastructure to secondary schools by 2027.
While education reforms may not yet dominate national headlines, Chidoka said significant groundwork is being laid.
“Evidence is beginning to replace assertion. Data is starting to shape decisions,” he noted.
He concluded by posing a broader governance question: if data-driven approaches can transform education, when will similar reforms be adopted across other sectors of government?