Aminu Abdullahi, the Commissioner, Higher Education, Sokoto State, who is also the Iyan Sokoto, is a highly respected titleholder of the Sultanate. Before his appointment by Governor Ahmad Aliyu, he was for nine years the Accountant General of the State. He was also at various times the Permanent Secretary in the Ministries of Environment and Animal Health. In this interview, he explains why revitalizing the education sector is one of the governor’s Nine-Point Smart Agenda

Honourable Commissioner, let’s talk about the Nine -Point Smart Agenda of Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto. Exactly what does the governor want to achieve with his investment in education?
Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto is absolutely clear about what he wants to achieve in education, which is development of human capital that’s important to the development of the state. The governor is driving the economic development of the state, so it’s important that we have indigenes that are skilled to work in the industries he is attracting.
We recently graduated 80 medical doctors and being our citizens, they can operate better in our environment because they understand the language and culture of the people. He sees education as both a social and economic investment. An educated person would easily understand the need to pay his/her tax and to be law abiding.
I would give you the example of an educated woman – she is a nurse, and the first teacher of her children, so if she is educated that would certainly impact on their healthcare and education because she would be able to give them proper care and teach them alphabets before they start school. Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto means business with his well thought out Nine-Point Smart Agenda. In housing he has delivered. He was recently crowned the Urban and Housing-Friendly Governor of the Year 2024 in recognition of his achievements in the sector. It’s not a joke to deliver 1,000 housing units within two years. In the area of legal reforms, he has equally done well. During our last State Executive Council meeting the Secretary to the State Government announced the execution of over 180 projects that have been completed in the last one and half years. The governor is a serious-minded person…he won’t fail himself, his father Senator Aliyu Magatarda Wamakko or the people who have stood solidly behind him.

Are your institutions of higher learning running entrepreneurship courses or are their curriculum still geared towards the continued production of public servants?
The National Policy on Education introduced entrepreneurship into the curriculum of higher institutions. In 2000 the Federal Government and the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) partnered to incorporate Entrepreneurship Education (EEd) into Technical and Vocational Education (TVE) curricula.
The main goals of entrepreneurship education in Nigeria include, preparing the students to be self-reliant and self-employed, creating employment opportunities, helping students to transition from a traditional economy to a modern industrial economy, training students to be creative and innovative in identifying business opportunities and to establish careers in small and medium-sized businesses. In Sokoto State our tertiary institutions have embraced the entrepreneurial message. I understand that even at the Secondary School Level the students are being thought Entrepreneurship. This is the way to go because the government has a limited capacity to create jobs.

How has your assignment as the Commissioner Higher Education Sokoto State been?
Without thinking twice about it I would say that it has been a wonderful experience unpretending over this critical sector. I am indeed very grateful that I am contributing my quota to ensuring that Sokoto State children receive qualitative education. And when you work with a governor that’s wholeheartedly committed to the development of education and that’s supportive, that definitely makes your assignment less stressful.
Before we go far into the interview, I think it’s important that I explain the difference between the Ministries of Higher Education, Science and Technology and Basic Education, which in a sense shows the importance the governor attaches to the educational sector. The first reason for the creation of the three separate ministries is because the governor wants an effective supervision of the educational sector which by the way is huge.
So, in Sokoto State like some other states has three ministries – Basic and Secondary, Science and Technology and Higher Education. Though we might be three ministries, we collaborate because we are dealing with essentially the same raw materials or if you like we are in a sense like the three arms of government – the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary- though distinct, we must work harmoniously to deliver development to the people.
So, the ministry of Higher Education is solely concerned with tertiary education – the institutions of higher learning that offer different courses to students after their secondary level of education. We have Diploma, Certificate and Degree Awarding institutions under the ministry numbering about 10. But at the recent State Executive Council meeting the Council in its wisdom took the decision to return the School of Nursing to the Ministry of Health and the School of Legal Studies to the Ministry of Justice, for more effective supervision.
The fact is that these five tertiary institutions were transferred to their mother ministries in line with the laws establishing them. We equally have 20 privately-owned tertiary institutions in Sokoto State that are also under our supervision only that the government doesn’t fund them.

What was the status of the sector when you took over?
Like every other sector when this administration assumed office things were at different levels of decay and the educational sector wasn’t spared which is most unfortunate. The handover note that officials of the ministry put together for me was depressing because the situation in all our institutions was alarming; the morale of the workers was expectedly low because their courses were not accredited and they were not paid their teaching incentives.
For instance, the state university was without power for more than three years. Most of the lecture theatres were in a state of dilapidation. On assumption of office Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto instantly instructed the Kaduna Power Company to restore power immediately to the university and the other institutions after reaching an agreement with them on payment of the backlog. That singular act elicited wild jubilation and confirmed that a Daniel has indeed come to judgement.
I am ashamed to talk about what Sokoto State suffered in the hands of Aminu Tambuwal, a man who at one time was the number four citizen and who could have been President in line with the constitutional succession process. On his own he even attempted to be President of our dear country twice. Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto has shown by words and actions that his commitment to the development of education is not political, that he in fact means his campaign promise to revamp the educational sector.
He has paid all outstanding salaries, including the teaching allowances and rehabilitated dilapidated infrastructures in our higher institutions. If you visit them, you will find an environment that is conducive for learning… we can’t be blaming the students for poor performance when we haven’t provided them with the necessary tools and environment to study.
We have equally gotten most courses being run by institutions accredited within one year. How on earth can any institution worth its salt run unaccredited courses? It certainly amounted to a sheer waste of everybody’s time, especially that of the students. Thankfully the examination bodies have shown an understanding which has gone a long way in resolving the issues.
The governor has approved the payment of accreditation fees to the various bodies like the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE). He has in all sincerity restored the hope of these students that was dashed by the past administration. As a mark of his commitment there is no memo from this ministry seeking his intervention on any urgent matter that hasn’t received his prompt response. He understands the importance of education and is determined to change the narrative.

But is the creation of three separate ministries not a confirmation that the sector … has serious challenges and that the burden of running the tertiary institutions for instance is already enough of a problem for you?
It’s important that I make the point that the governor is well guided in his decision to create the three ministries. It’s backed by the decision of the National Council of Education which is the highest policy making body on education in Nigeria on the separation of the ministries for effective supervision. It is a national policy. The governor could have chosen to ignore it, but being a firm believer in the rule of law and convinced that it is the right decision he decided to go along with it wholeheartedly because it serves his purpose of the sector being vigorously supervised.

And then you’ve also talked about rehabilitation …give me an idea of the total amount spent so far on the accreditation exercise?
We have spent good money on the rehabilitation of dilapidated structures in our institutions, …to date about N3 billion.

I want to take you back to the accreditation issue. Can you give me an idea of the total cost of what was spent?
For accreditation the cost is huge. For some courses we paid N35 million and for others N70 million. …it depended on the course. Thankfully accreditation is once in five years. So, we have some breathing space. So far, virtually all our institutions have had their courses accredited and the cost is running into millions of Naira. Some few months back we paid the NUC about N100 million for courses being run at the State University and they were very impressed with our governor for his efforts in running a university that is truly a center of learning and research. In fact, they followed up with a letter of appreciation to the governor. The governor on his part is extremely happy because he is seeing light at the end of the tunnel. I can tell you for free that the university surpassed the NUC conditions, and that we didn’t cut corners …. we adhered to their guidelines.

Were they satisfied with the activities of Rectors, Provosts when their schools were running unaccredited courses. And did you sack them?
According to the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007 which aims at ensuring the prudent management of resources and to promote transparency and accountability, if a public officer steals money he would be charged to court of law and tried. Also, according to that same law if an officer commits an irresponsible act, he or she is liable for persecution. But it wasn’t their fault that the Tambuwal administration refused to accredit the courses their schools were running. They didn’t commit a deliberate and irresponsible act because they kept drawing the attention of government to the problem and there is overwhelming evidence. So, it would have been heartless sacking them for a crime that they didn’t commit.

So why didn’t the previous administration pay for the accreditation of these courses?
I wish I could provide you with the answer considering the importance of our schools running courses that are accredited. It certainly beats my imagination that they didn’t. I am not saying this to paint the previous administration in a bad light, but just to put the facts before the public and nothing more. The governor has since moved on from what they didn’t do to doing them. Sokoto State is lucky to have a calm and dedicated governor after the disastrous eight years of Tambuwal.

Considering the premium placed on education by the governor, how well has he funded education? Does his budgeting allocation to education meet the UNESCO standard of 25 per cent?
I want to recall that in November 2023, several countries under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), adopted the recommendation on education for peace and human rights, international understanding, cooperation, fundamental freedoms, global citizenship and sustainable development. Today, UNESCO remains the only global standard-setting instrument that lays out how education can and should be used to bring about lasting peace and sustainable development and in positioning education as a key driver of peace and international understanding.
Education in the 2024 budget was allocated the highest percentage and in 2025 it has equally maintained its number one position in terms of budgetary allocation. Sokoto State in the last two years has in fact surpassed the UNESCO budget recommendation. And what does this say about the Governor’s unwavering commitment to education? It, no doubt, clears whatever doubt about his desire to rewrite the ugly story of education in the state.
As a professional accountant I prefer to talk more in terms of releases because you can be allocated a fantastic budget without it being cash backed. So, we say thank you to the governor for not only allocating funds to education, but for his express approvals and for cash backing them. Our modest achievements are due to his leadership and support.

In the light of the economic situation many states have been forced to increase fees in their institutions. So, should your students expect an increase in fees and wouldn’t it affect enrollment?
You know the story of Sokoto State. We remain eternally grateful to our father who by the way was my teacher and leader, Senator Aliyu Magatarda Wamakko, for laying a solid foundation for our educational system using his experience as an educationist. As Governor of Sokoto State, he put in a place several fundamental policies; free and compulsory education, he encouraged girl child education and so many other policies. We certainly won’t be increasing fees rather we would continue to encourage our students with incentives like scholarships to pursue their education to the highest level.
The robust policies of our governor have continued to attract more students to enroll into schools in the state and abroad. In fact, enrollment has increased and very interestingly is the fact that students have stopped skipping school. We have achieved all these due to the policy of Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto who understands the importance of education and is walking the talk. The previous government had for inexplicable reasons stopped the stipends and other privileges of the students which Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto immediately restored.

I am not too sure about other states’ allocation for education meeting the UNESCO standard…but what is the relationship between your state, UNESCO and other development partners?
The interesting thing about development partners is that they only come in when they see what you are doing. It’s only when they see your seriousness and enthusiasm that they would partner with you. Our budget outlook which is friendly attracted them. We are actually having a synergy with them, and several other projects with different development partners.
UNESCO that you mentioned earlier linked us up with other partners because they are impressed with what we are doing. They are facilitating and augmenting what the government is doing. So, we are happy with the relationship.

Are they specific interventions, for instance, for girl-child education?
Yes. But that is in Basic and Secondary Education. It would be great if you equally interview the commissioner in charge of the ministry.

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), to what extent has your State University benefited from its funding?
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria in its farsighted wisdom in 2011 to disburse, manage, and monitor education tax to government-owned tertiary institutions. You know that before the establishment of the agency in 2011, government-owned tertiary institutions were poorly funded, so the scheme was designed to improve the crisis in the sector through its interventions especially in the area of facilities where the decay was monumental. In fact, facilities in most schools had almost collapsed, teachers and lecturers’ morale were at their lowest. The enabling environment for conducive teaching and learning was absent. So, the government took this step to arrest the rot. This background is important so we can appreciate the seriousness of the situation and why the agency was set up. TETFund’s interventions are only for the universities. Primary schools have the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) that is saddled with the responsibility of providing greater access to, and ensuring quality of basic education throughout the country. The Universal Basic Education Programme was introduced in 1999 by the Federal Government of Nigeria to also address the rot in the sector.

So has the Sokoto State University benefited from its intervention(s)?
Each year TETFund intervenes based on specific requests of the concerned institution. They don’t decide for you, because you know what you need most. For example, if we need a Laboratory, we will spell out our specific needs to TETFund and they would react appropriately. So they can’t come and build hostels for us when what we need is a lecture hall or ICT facilities. Our schools have well equipped hostels, we have beds so we don’t need them, so we can’t ask them to buy beds that we have. So, the answer is a big yes. The state university has tremendously benefited from the intervention of the Fund in various areas.