Just In: HEI Nigeria Slams Katsina State Over Clampdown on Private Schools

 

HEI Nigeria Slams Katsina State Over Clampdown on Private Schools

Abuja |TEC News | 20th August,2025.

The Human Enhancement Institute (HEI Nigeria) has condemned the Katsina State Government’s recent directive revoking all existing licenses of private and community schools, describing it as “oppression, economic bullying, and deliberate exploitation” of school proprietors.

In a statement signed by its Lead Director and Consultant, Johnson Da-Silva, HEI Nigeria faulted the policy which compels proprietors to reapply under a new regime of increased fees, despite having valid operational approvals and meeting minimum standard.

 

According to the institute, the action is not a reform but

“extortion dressed up as policy,”

pointing out that international best practices, as well as examples from Lagos and Ogun States, emphasize monitoring and compliance rather than wholesale license termination.

HEI Nigeria warned that the clampdown could destabilize the education sector, force school closures, raise fees, and push more children out of school, especially in Northern Nigeria where access to education is already fragile.

“Private schools are vital partners in Nigeria’s education system, employing thousands of teachers and reducing the burden on public schools,”

the statement noted, adding that such arbitrary policies threaten the future of learners.

The institute further called on education advocacy groups, particularly the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS Nigeria), to urgently intervene, while urging the Federal Ministry of Education to ensure states regulate responsibly without undermining access to education.

HEI Nigeria urged Katsina State Government to immediately reverse the directive, stressing that true reform must focus on improving learning outcomes, not exploiting proprietors.

“We cannot claim to be reforming education by shutting the doors of learning against children. Any policy that increases the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria is not reform—it is regression,”

the institute declared.

 

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