Following the resumption of schools on Monday, parents and guardians in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have voiced concerns about the sudden hike in school fees in both public and private institutions. Many expressed their struggle to meet the rising costs due to the current economic challenges, including the effects of the fuel subsidy removal.
Abuja City Journal visited schools within Gwarimpa axis to interview parents and private school officials, including Milestone International School and Greater Mind Nursery and Primary School.
Mrs. Blessing Chinasa, a mother of two, highlighted the doubling of her children’s fees, from N300,000 to N600,000 per child, forcing her to seek loans.
She said, “But now the amount is doubled and currently I am to pay N600,000 per child, that is a total of N1.2million for my two children.
“The only way I will be able to meet up with the new fee increment is to borrow from my bank or any other source,” she lamented.
Similarly, Mrs. Angela Chukwu, a civil servant, described the situation as unbearable, pleading for government intervention to ease the burden on families.
Mr. Tijani Ahmed suggested that the government set a standard benchmark for tuition fees and extend the federal education loan scheme to secondary schools to help parents manage these rising costs.
Mr Ahmed said, “This standard will enable the government to monitor the price of school fees, avoid rapid hike of school fees to enable the poor to access education.
“The education loan scheme of the Federal Government should also be extended to secondary school students to ease the burden on the parents, he said
Another parent, who wished to remain anonymous, recommended that families prioritize enrolling their children in schools they can afford to avoid accruing unnecessary debts. Despite these coping strategies, the overwhelming sentiment was a plea for government action to provide some relief from the mounting financial pressures on families across the FCT.
Attempts by Abuja City Journal reporters to meet with administrators at Greater Mind Nursery and Primary School about fee increment were unsuccessful since the school’s security stopped them from visiting its premises.
