There is a story President Bola Tinubu tells, not like a politician reading from a script, but like a man remembering a cold night he can never forget.
He was young, broke, and far from home. He had just landed in the United States with a dream bigger than his pocket. School had to wait.
“I drove a taxi to earn money for my education. I even had to postpone starting school for several months to save enough,” Tinubu recalled.
In Chicago, he did what millions of struggling students still do today. He picked up job after job. He worried about tuition. He worried about rent. He worried about food. And he worried if he would ever make it to the classroom at all.
“I know what it means to worry about tuition, accommodation and how to make ends meet while pursuing an education,” he said.
That memory, he says, has never left him. It is now the engine driving the biggest education reforms Nigeria has seen in decades.
A President Who Remembers Being Broke
For Tinubu, education is not just another sector in the budget. It is personal.
“Those experiences have stayed with me. I know what education made possible in my own life, and I believe every Nigerian child deserves that same opportunity, regardless of where they are born or what their parents can afford,” he said.
It is a promise that now carries numbers, policies, and brick-and-mortar results.
At the heart of it is NELFUND, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund. According to the President, the fund has already disbursed over *N372 billion* in student loans to cover school fees and upkeep, keeping thousands of young Nigerians in school who would have otherwise dropped out.
For a generation that has watched parents sell land, borrow, and beg just to pay fees, NELFUND is becoming the difference between a degree and a dream deferred.
Skills, Not Just Certificates
Tinubu’s vision goes beyond university degrees.
His administration’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programme has attracted over *2.8 million applications* — a clear sign that young Nigerians are hungry for skills that pay.
Thirty-eight technical colleges across the country have been rehabilitated, and students in federal and selected state technical colleges now enjoy free school fees, free boarding, free textbooks and free uniforms.
It is an attempt to restore dignity to technical education, where a welder, electrician, plumber or fashion designer can earn as much respect, and as much money, as a graduate in a suit.
An End to Endless Strikes and Endless Years
For decades, the Nigerian university system has been defined by one painful phrase: strike.
Tinubu says his government is determined to break that cycle.
His administration has reached an agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) that provides for a *40 per cent increase in academic staff remuneration*, alongside measures to bring stability back to campuses.
His message to students is blunt and simple: “A four-year course must take four years. Our young people deserve to complete their education on time and get on with their lives.”
“Promise made, Promise Kept,” he added.
Training Doctors At Home
Nigeria’s health sector has long suffered from a shortage of doctors and nurses, with many trained professionals leaving for abroad.
To reverse that, Tinubu disclosed that his government is investing N110 billion in the rehabilitation of *24 medical schools* across the country.
The results are already showing. Annual nursing enrolment has jumped from 28,000 to 115,000. Medical and dental enrolment has risen from 5,000 to 12,000.
“Nigeria needs more doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals, and we must build the capacity to train them here at home,” the President said.
One Million Children Back To School
Perhaps the most emotional figure in Tinubu’s account is this: over *one million out-of-school children* have returned to learning under his administration.
Behind that number are girls who were married off early, boys who were sent to hawk on the streets, and children in conflict zones who had given up on school.
His government is also pushing teacher development, increased opportunities for girls, and a new national curriculum that restores Nigerian History to classrooms.
“Our children must know where we have come from, understand the country they belong to, and be prepared to take responsibility for its future,” Tinubu said.
A Call To Every Nigerian
Tinubu commended his education team, led by the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, for driving the reforms.
He also unveiled the interactive A-Z of the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI), a one-stop platform that brings together all the reforms, programmes, achievements and opportunities in the sector.
He urged Nigerians to visit *edu4pbat.ng* to explore what is available.
“If you are a parent, find out what opportunities are available for your children. If you are a student, explore the programmes you can benefit from. If you are a teacher, see what support is available,” he said.
And in a rare open invitation, he asked Nigerians to hold him accountable.
“And if something is not working as it should in your community, I want to hear about it. Your feedback will help us identify problems and address them,” he added.
The Boy Who Waited To Go To School
From a taxi in America to the highest office in Nigeria, Tinubu’s story is a reminder that education can lift a child from anywhere to everywhere.
“The circumstances of a child’s birth should never determine the limits of their ambition. Our responsibility is to give every Nigerian child a fair chance to fulfil their potential,” he said.
He admits there is still more work to do. But for the boy who once postponed school to survive, the mission is clear: no Nigerian child should have to postpone their future because they are poor.
