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UNILAG cuts fees after meeting with student groups

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The University of Lagos has announced a reduction in tuition fees after meeting with the National Association of Nigerian Students executives following several protests.

Addressing journalists immediately after the meeting late on Thursday evening, the university’s vice-chancellor, Folashade Ogunsola, expressed satisfaction at the outcome of the meeting.

“We just had a roundtable discussion with our faculty presidents and the NANS leadership and we also had the NANS president come into Lagos. We also had the NANS South-West leaders and that of the Lagos chapter. It was a very fruitful deliberation,” stated Ms Ogunsola. “Like everything, once you start something, you come back to the table to discuss and we are always listening to our students. When we heard loud and clear that they really wanted a reduction in fees, we felt it was important that we listened to that.”

She added, “And so, right now, management and the NANS have worked through how we could reduce, in a way that will not hurt the university, but we will make it a little better for parents and students alike. For returning students, we have agreed to take away N20,000 across board.”

Ms Ogunsola explained that rather than pay N100,000 as stipulated earlier, returning students would now pay N80,000 per annum. She said those with laboratory would now pay N120,000 instead of N140,000. Students in the medical field will pay N170,000 instead of N190,000 initially announced.

“Since then, it became clear that things are not getting any better and so, we also took a little away from the utility bills, which is coming down from the initial N20,000 to now N15,000 and also took out N3,000 from the convocation bills,” the vice-chancellor added. “For the incoming students, we slashed N10,000 from their fees each, because when we fixed these bills, it was based on data, it wasn’t just arbitrary and we already had moderations of these bills.”

NANS president Usman Barambu said “right now, we have also been able to ensure that the utility bills are brought down to N15,000, while the convocation fees have come down to N27,000.”

Mr Barambu added, “We also succeeded in bringing down the hostel fees to N43,000 as against the initial N90,000, the medical hostel at the College of Medicine Idi-araba to N65,000 from the initial N120,000. The fees for the Sodeinde hostel here on campus too was also reduced from N250,000 to N135,000.”

The university had, in a statement in August, put mandatory charges for new undergraduate students at N126,325 for courses without a laboratory or studio for one academic session. It indicated N176,325 as mandatory charges for one academic session for courses with laboratory and studio.

A further breakdown of the approved mandatory charges for one academic year or session for returning students showed that they would pay N100,750 for courses without laboratory and studio. According to the statement, the approved mandatory charges for laboratory and studio courses are N140,250.

The university approved N190,250 charges for all medical students. It noted that utility charges of N20,000 were to be paid by each undergraduate, while N30,000 was to be paid by all final-year students.

UNILAG attributed the hike to the need for students to get the best learning experience, which the students rejected and demanded reversal.

Parents say tuition costs have forced them to pull kids from schools

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The recent increase in school fees by government-owned and private schools has taken a new toll on parents, resulting in the withdrawal of their children.

The parents spoke in separate interviews in Abuja on Friday. They called on the government to take immediate action to mitigate the adverse effects of the petroleum subsidy removal on parents and school owners.

Rotimi Lawrence, a civil servant, said he withdrew his child’s admission from a government school due to an increase in tuition fees, a development he said was not envisaged initially.

“It is heartbreaking to note that private schools are increasing school fees, but we understand with them. Government schools, which should be a succour to parents, also increased theirs.

“For me not to allow this problem to continue, I had to withdraw my daughter from school when I heard that government schools had increased fees to N100,000; this is apart from other payments for new students,” he said.

Folashade Abdulrahman, a nurse, appealed to school proprietors to be considerate in their approach to fee adjustment by considering that workers’ salary has not been reviewed upward.

Ms Abdulrahman said schools need to cover their costs but pleaded for transparency and a fair balance between quality education and affordability.

A single mother, Lizzy Ogbu, appealed to the government to step in and address the issues of tuition hikes so that the less-privileged could also have opportunities to give their children quality education.

Ms Ogbu said that though the actual school fees might be low, the additional cost of sending a child to school which school owners also increased, is preventing parents from sending their children to good schools.

“I have to withdraw my child from the school because of the increase in school buses by 100 per cent.

“I know that I will not be able to sustain the payment of the school bus; hence, I withdrew my child to a nearby school where he can trek to and from school, not minding the quality of teaching,” she said.

Meanwhile, Olusola Bankole, the immediate past chairman of the National Association of Proprietress of Private Schools (NAPPS), FCT chapter, appealed to parents for calm as the present situation was a face that would pass soon.

Ms Bankole advised parents to plan ahead and schedule their spending in line with their earnings.

The federal government had pledged to set up a formal negotiation team between the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and relevant stakeholders to look into the hike in the fees.

It said the aim is to ensure that the development does not decrease the quality of education.

The Minister of State for Education, Yusuf Sununu, recently said school fee hikes could be a core factor in bringing about attacks on schools, hence the need to look into this area to avert further attacks.

Tinubu sacks CBN chiefs, names Cardoso new Governor

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President Bola Tinubu has approved the nomination of Dr. Olayemi Michael Cardoso to serve as the new Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for a term of five (5) years at the first instance, pending his confirmation by the Nigerian Senate.

This directive is in conformity with Section 8 (1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007, which vests in the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the authority to appoint the Governor and Four (4) Deputy Governors for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), subject to confirmation by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Furthermore, President Bola Tinubu has approved the nomination of four new Deputy Governors of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for a term of five (5) years at the first instance, pending their confirmation by the Nigerian Senate, as listed below:

(1) Mrs. Emem Nnana Usoro

(2) Mr. Muhammad Sani Abdullahi Dattijo

(3) Mr. Philip Ikeazor

(4) Dr. Bala M. Bello

In line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda, the President expects the above listed nominees to successfully implement critical reforms at the Central Bank of Nigeria, which will enhance the confidence of Nigerians and international partners in the restructuring of the Nigerian economy toward sustainable growth and prosperity for all," read the statement from Ajuri Ngelale, the president’s media aide.

Nigeria’s August inflation figures hit 25.8 per cent

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The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says Nigeria’s headline inflation rate increased to 25.80 per cent in August 2023.

The NBS disclosed this in its August Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Inflation Report released in Abuja on Friday.

According to the report, the figure of 1.72 per cent is higher than the 24.08 per cent recorded in July 2023.

It said on a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate in August was 5.27 per cent higher than the rate recorded in August 2022 at 20.52 per cent.

The report said the contributions of items on the divisional level to the increase in the headline index are food and non-alcoholic beverages at 13.36 per cent and housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuel at 4.32 per cent.

Others were clothing and footwear at 1.97 per cent, transport at 1.68 per cent, furnishings, household equipment and maintenance at 1.30 per cent, education at 1.02 per cent, and health at 0.78 per cent.

“Miscellaneous goods and services at 0.43 per cent; restaurant and hotels at 0.31 per cent; alcoholic beverage, tobacco and kola at 0.28 per cent; recreation and culture at 0.18 per cent, and communication at 0.18 per cent,” NBS said.

In addition, the report said, on a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in August 2023 was 3.18 per cent, which was 0.29 per cent higher than the rate recorded in July 2023 at 2.89 per cent.

It said the percentage change in the average CPI for the 12 months ending August 2023 over the average for the previous 12-month period was 22.38 per cent.

“This indicates a 5.31 per cent increase compared to 17.07 per cent recorded in August 2022,” the bureau stated.

The report said the food inflation rate in August was 29.34 per cent on a year-on-year basis, which was 6.22 per cent higher compared to the rate recorded in August 2022 at 23.12 per cent.

According to NBS, increases in prices of oil and fats, bread and cereals, fish, potatoes, yams and other tubers, fruits, meat, vegetables, milk, cheese, and eggs cause a rise in food inflation.

It said on a month-on-month basis, the food inflation rate in August was 3.87 per cent, which was a 0.41 per cent rise compared to the rate recorded in July at 3. 45 per cent.

The report said the “all items less farm produce’’ or core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce, stood at 21.15 per cent in August year-on-year.

“This increased by 4.03 per cent compared to 17.12 per cent recorded in August 2022,’’ NBS said.

It said the highest increases were recorded in prices of passenger transport by air and road, gas, vehicle spare parts, medical services, maintenance, and repair of personal transport equipment, etc.

The NBS said on a month-on-month basis, the core inflation rate was 2.18 per cent in August 2023, indicating a 0.07 per cent rise from July 2023 at 2.11 per cent.

“The average 12-month annual inflation rate was 19.18 per cent for the 12 months ending August 2023; this was 4.38 per cent points higher than the 14.80 per cent recorded in August 2022.”

The report said on a year-on-year basis, in August, the urban inflation rate was 27.69 per cent, which was 6.73 per cent higher than the 20.95 per cent recorded in August 2022.

“On a month-on-month basis, the urban inflation rate was 3.29 per cent in August, representing a 0.24 per cent rise compared to July 2023 at 3.05 per cent.’’

The report said that on a year-on-year basis, the rural inflation rate was 24.10 per cent, which was 3.98 per cent higher compared to the 20.12 per cent recorded in August 2022.

“On a month-on-month basis, the rural inflation rate was 3.08 per cent, which increased by 0.34 per cent compared to July 2023 at 2.74 per cent.’’

On states’ profile analysis, the report showed in August, all items’ inflation rate on a year-on-year basis was highest in Kogi at 31.50 per cent, followed by Lagos at 29.17 per cent and Rivers at 29.06 per cent.

It, however, said the slowest rise in headline inflation on a year-on-year basis was recorded in Sokoto at 20.91 per cent, followed by Borno at 21.77 per cent and Nasarawa at 22.25 per cent.

The report, however, said in August 2023, all items inflation rate on a month-on-month basis was highest in Kwara at 6.07 per cent, Osun at 4.36 per cent, and Kogi at 4.35 per cent.

“Sokoto at 1.38 per cent, followed by Borno at 1.73 per cent and Ogun at 1.89 per cent recorded the slowest rise in month-on-month inflation,” it said.

The report said on a year-on-year basis, food inflation was highest in Kogi at 38.84 per cent, followed by Lagos at 36.04 per cent and Kwara at 35.33 per cent.

“Sokoto at 20.09 per cent, followed by Nasarawa at 24.35 per cent and Jigawa at 24.53 per cent, recorded the slowest rise in food inflation on a year-on-year basis.’’

However, the report said on a month-on-month basis that food inflation was highest in Rivers at 7.12 per cent, followed by Kwara at 5.89 per cent and Kogi at 5.80 per cent.

“With Sokoto at 0.50 per cent, followed by Abuja at 1.30 per cent and Niger at 1.40 per cent recorded the slowest rise on month-on-month food inflation.,” it added.

FCTA plans to partner Nasarawa on road and rail projects

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The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, says the FCT Administration will partner with the Nasarawa State government on developing rail lines and road transportation networks.

Mr Wike stated this when the Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa visited him in his office in Abuja on Friday.

Acknowledging the closeness of Nasarawa to the FCT, the minister stressed the need for synergy to develop the two entities.

He said the FCTA would open discussion with the Nasarawa government on the development of the metro rail line from Apo to Keffi and the completion of the road network from Abacha Barracks to Masaka.

Mr Wike added that efforts were on top gear to rehabilitate the metro line as directed by President Bola Tinubu, which he said would be completed in the next seven months.

He attributed the key challenge affecting the development efforts of the FCT to a shortage of funds, adding that many projects and contracts had been awarded but needed to be executed due to insufficient funds.

The minister also emphasised the need for a stronger partnership with the Nasarawa government to tackle insecurity.

Earlier, Mr Sule pointed out that more than 40 per cent of people working in Abuja were residing in Nasarawa State, stressing the need for partnership for development.

He explained that based on the agreement, the Nasarawa government was to provide the needed security, collapse the 22 motor parks causing traffic on the road and build a terminal in their place.

The governor said a terminal that could accommodate 900 vehicles had been built on seven hectares of land and was already in use.

On the metro train rail line, Mr Sule said his government wanted to tap additional metro line development from the FCT.

Mr Sule said the development of the rail transport linking Abuja city with Nasarawa would open another area of development for housing, not only for Nasarawa residents but also for the FCT.