Improve welfare of Nigerian teachers

I was, and I am, a teacher. I was a Parents Teachers Association-hired teacher at Oba Akinbiyi High School (II), Mokola, Ibadan, in 1997. Apart from that stint, I also taught briefly at a private secondary school during my National Youth Service in Asaba, Delta State, as well as at another private secondary school in the Akowonjo area of Lagos State around 2001/2002. My late father, Deacon Isaac Ojo, taught for about 40 years across several primary schools in Oyo and Osun sates and retired as a headmaster in 1995. Currently, I don’t just teach but train people across various democratic institutions, namely election management bodies (Independent National Electoral Commission of Nigeria and State Independent Electoral Commissions), political parties, media, national and state legislative assemblies, police, and civil society organisations.

Information gleaned from the website of UNESCO says, “World Teachers’ Day is held annually on October 5 to celebrate all teachers around the globe. It commemorates the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 International Labor Organisation/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers, which sets benchmarks for the rights and responsibilities of teachers, and standards for their initial preparation and further education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions. In 2026, the day marks the 60th anniversary of the recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers.”

In Nigeria, this year’s celebration focused on five interconnected pillars: innovation, mobility, Artificial Intelligence, inclusion, and professional excellence. The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, announced that the selection process for the 2026 World Teachers’ Day awards was digitised to promote transparency, accountability, and efficiency. The celebration includes a symposium, a march-past featuring state flags and cultural attire, and the recognition of 14 awardees, including the first, second, and third best teachers, who received prestigious car gifts, while the best Federal Unity College received a bus. Other prizes include laptops.

In commemoration of World Teachers’ Day, Dr. Akin Ayeni and I were guests on a breakfast program on Ekiti 91.5 FM, Ado Ekiti, last Monday, where we dissected the plights of Nigerian teachers and offered solutions. The host was Ademola Adeleke. I enumerated some of the plights of Nigerian teachers, including low wages, insecurity, quackery, inadequate classrooms, lecture theatres, libraries and laboratories, high turnover of staff, especially in private schools, high workloads, disrespect from parents, students and even government.

I made a proverb on the programme. Elo ni teacher ngba, ti o ntuto s’owo ka’wo osu (meaning, how much does a teacher earn that he or she needs to use saliva to count salary). This was a random joke even among teachers when they used to collect their salary in cash. These days, they receive their wages via online money transfer. The proverb, however, is meant to drive home the paltry nature of the salaries and wages of teachers cum lecturers. I recall a sticker produced by the Academic Staff Union of Universities many years ago with the inscription, “My take-home pay cannot take me home.” That’s very instructive.

On the issue of insecurity, according to Daily Trust of October 1, 2022, “The registrar of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria, Professor Josiah Ajiboye, said attacks on schools by insurgents had claimed the lives of more than 2,295 teachers in the North-East between 2009 and 2022.” The PUNCH, in its June 5, 2026, online edition, reported that “An estimated 603 students and teachers have been kidnapped in seven mass abductions across schools in Nigeria between March 2024 and May 2026 under President Bola Tinubu, despite the N145bn Safe Schools Initiative.” Recall that on May 15, 2026, a total of 46 persons – seven teachers and 39 students – were abducted from Community High School Ahoro-Esinele and Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State. Thankfully, most of them were rescued, though two teachers were murdered by the bandits.  Michael Oyedokun was reportedly beheaded, while John Olaleye was shot dead during the attack. It is noteworthy that some university lecturers have also been abducted in the past.

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Heavy workloads and low wages have resulted in brain drain and high turnover among teaching staff across our academic institutions. Many education graduates don’t want to teach. The lecturers in tertiary institutions are leaving in droves for greener pastures abroad. Many teachers today take the job as a last resort when better options are not available. Many of the private schools recruit untrained teachers. They sidestep the federal government policy requiring every teacher to be certified by the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria. Recall that the TRCN regulates the teaching profession in Nigeria by setting standards, accrediting teacher education programmes, registering qualified teachers, and enforcing professional ethics. It establishes national minimum standards for teacher education and monitors teacher training institutions, including Colleges of Education, university faculties, polytechnic schools of education, and the National Teachers Institute.

Unlike in the 20th century when teachers in Nigeria were widely respected and seen as mini-God, in contemporary times, there have been situations where pupils and students openly abuse teachers, bully them and even beat them up. Some irresponsible parents have even gone to school to harass and molest teachers for caning or meting out corporal punishments to their wards and children. Thus, many teachers now work in an atmosphere of fear.

Mrs Comfort Fasunwon is a multiple award-winning teacher in Ondo State; here is an excerpt from what she wrote on her Facebook wall in commemoration of the 2026 World Teachers Day: “To my fellow teachers, today. Teaching is not always easy.

There are days when the workload is heavy, resources may be limited, and the results of our efforts may not be immediately visible. Yet we continue to show up, teach, encourage, correct, inspire and believe in our students. Sometimes, a teacher’s greatest reward is not a certificate or trophy. It is seeing a child who once struggled begin to understand. It is watching a student grow in confidence. It is meeting a former student years later and hearing the words, ‘Ma’am or sir, you made a difference in my life.’”

My plea to the government at all levels, as well as private school owners, is to ensure that their schools are well resourced and staff welfare is made paramount. Professionalism should be their watchword. Teachers’ rewards shouldn’t be in heaven; a foretaste of that should be here on earth. Best wishes to fellow teachers and nation builders. Remember the popular song: “Anyone who hates teachers will homeschool his or her child.”