IA Foundation says N8.4bn earmarked for non-education projects in 2026 Almajiri Commission budget
Millions of Almajiri and other out-of-school children in Nigeria risk being denied access to education because funds meant for their learning are being diverted to projects unrelated to education, the Founder of IA Foundation, Ibironke Adeagbo, has warned. In a statement released on Tuesday, she said the practice threatens efforts to tackle one of the world’s largest out-of-school children crises.
According to the foundation, although the 2026 Appropriation Act allocated N22.82bn to the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children’s Education, about N8.4bn was earmarked for projects such as road construction in Ogun, Katsina and Ekiti states, ambulances, dental equipment, solar streetlights and other infrastructure with no direct link to education.
Adeagbo said the greatest victims are Almajiri children who remain outside the classroom. “Whether conceived by the commission or inserted by lawmakers, every naira spent on roads, boreholes or ambulances through an education agency’s budget is a naira that does not reach a child who cannot read, write or count,” she stated. She added, “Every shortfall in the Almajiri education budget translates into another child remaining out of school.”
The commission had clarified that the controversial projects were constituency interventions inserted into its budget by the National Assembly and assigned to it for implementation. Adeagbo acknowledged the explanation but insisted it does not address the core problem. “The real concern is that resources intended to educate vulnerable children are being diverted from their primary purpose,” she said.
The foundation warned that using an education agency’s budget for non-education projects delays the establishment of learning centres, recruitment of teachers and expansion of access to quality education. “It is not merely an accounting issue; it is a matter of national priorities. When an agency established to educate vulnerable children becomes, even in part, a vehicle for unrelated infrastructure projects, the children it was created to serve bear the consequences,” Adeagbo added.
IA Foundation contrasted the situation with reforms at UBEC, commending Executive Secretary Dr Aisha Garba for facilitating the release of over N100bn in matching grants to states and the FCT. The funds, it noted, have been used to build classrooms, provide furniture, boreholes, sanitation facilities and improve teacher capacity. “This is what happens when education funds are protected and invested in children. It is the benchmark every institution entrusted with the future of Nigerian children should meet,” Adeagbo said.
The foundation urged the National Assembly and Federal Ministry of Education to ring-fence the Almajiri Commission’s budget strictly for education interventions, stop routing constituency projects through education agencies, publish detailed expenditure reports, and strengthen oversight. It also applauded the Ministry for suspending proposed WAEC and NECO fee hikes. “Nigeria cannot afford to keep treating the education of its most vulnerable children as negotiable. Every shortfall in the Almajiri budget is a child who stays out of school for another year,” Adeagbo concluded.
