Akwa Ibom State has recorded a combined increase of 66,340 pupils and students in public primary and secondary schools in three academic sessions, with enrolment rising from 791,933 in 2023/2024 to 858,273 in 2025/2026.
The increase comprises 40,727 additional pupils at the primary level and 25,613 students at the secondary level, according to figures presented by the State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ubong Umoh, at a media briefing in Uyo.
Umoh said primary school enrolment rose from 401,212 in 2023/2024 to 426,457 in 2024/2025 and 441,939 in 2025/2026. Secondary enrolment similarly increased from 390,721 to 415,631 and 416,334 during the three-year period.
The Commissioner attributed the growth partly to the state’s policy of removing financial barriers to education, including the payment of examination fees, provision of learning materials and improvements in school infrastructure.
He said the government spent about ₦7.582 billion on examinations and examination-related activities between 2023 and 2026, with about ₦6.878 billion going directly to examination fees.
According to him, the expenditure covered more than one million candidates across basic, secondary and technical education, including ₦4.817 billion released for WASSCE-related examinations and about ₦201.8 million for NABTEB examinations involving 6,241 students.
Umoh said the government’s assumption of examination costs had also been reflected in participation figures, with Basic Education Certificate Examination candidates increasing from 58,644 in 2023 to 83,613 in 2026, while candidates for SS3 promotional examinations rose from 63,425 to 85,449 within the same period.
He disclosed that the state also spent ₦616.834 million uploading students’ continuous assessment records to the WAEC platform, while funds were provided for science practical reagents and accreditation of examination centres. He said no government-owned examination centre in the state had been cancelled between 2023 and 2026.
At the basic education level, the Commissioner said the state released ₦10.902 billion as counterpart funding for UBEC interventions between 2023 and the first tranche of 2026. The money was used for school construction and rehabilitation, teachers’ quarters, perimeter fencing, water facilities and solar lighting.
He said the administration had constructed 31 model primary schools and five additional schools under special interventions, with 18 already commissioned. The schools, he added, were equipped with facilities including teachers’ quarters, water and electricity, while pupils received uniforms, shoes, socks, school bags and exercise books.
Chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr Anietie Etuk, however, put the broader matching-grant intervention at about ₦14.6 billion. He said projects were selected after technical assessments of schools and consultations with head teachers, teachers and community leaders.
Etuk said 10,782 persons had also benefited from training programmes organised by the board, stressing that infrastructure development was being accompanied by investments in personnel and learning conditions.
The government further disclosed that ₦19.5 billion had been released between August 2023 and September 2026 for gratuities owed retired primary school teachers, while ₦1.017 billion was paid as a one-off wardrobe allowance to 20,345 teachers across primary, secondary and technical schools. Another ₦3.584 billion was provided for school subvention, monitoring and evaluation during the 2023/2024, 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 sessions.
Beyond basic and secondary education, Umoh said Akwa Ibom State University had expanded from 43 degree programmes in eight faculties to 84 programmes across 17 faculties, with student enrolment reaching 11,423. He added that the state had disbursed about ₦1.6 billion in bursaries to 17,533 tertiary students and spent about ₦354.4 million on scholarships and educational grants between 2023 and 2026.
The Commissioner also disclosed that the government had shut down more than 340 illegal or substandard private schools operating from unapproved locations, including residential buildings and churches. He warned that tuition remained free in public schools and urged parents to report school authorities demanding unauthorised charges.
