Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised the Federal Government’s proposed N50,000 examination fee for candidates sitting the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) examinations from 2027, describing the policy as anti-poor.
In a statement issued on Sunday by his Senior Special Assistant On media Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the increase would make education less accessible to children from low-income families at a time many Nigerians are struggling with rising living costs.
He argued that education should remain a fundamental right and not become a privilege for the wealthy, warning that higher examination fees could worsen the country’s out-of-school children crisis.
According to him, rather than creating financial barriers to education, the government should be expanding access and easing the burden on parents.
Atiku warned that pricing more children out of school could expose them to poverty, unemployment, crime and other social challenges.
The Federal Government recently approved a uniform examination fee of N50,000 for WAEC and NECO candidates, effective from the 2027 academic session, replacing the current fee of about N27,500.
