School resumption: Parents groan as fees double for new academic session

As the new school year begins across Nigeria for the 2025/2026 academic session, many parents are struggling with the overwhelming demands.

The reopening season has brought fresh waves of anxiety and frustration for many parents and guardians across the country.

there is the reality of rising tuition fees, costly textbooks, uniforms, and other essentials that must be provided.

This comes amid rising cost of living across the country, with most of the citizens struggling to feed.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, inflation reached 21.88 percent in July 2025, making it increasingly hard for parents to cover basic household needs, let alone rising educational expenses.

Some parents who enrolled their children in private schools, said the burden of school fees increment was getting out of hand, while some have left their children at the mercy of poor facilities in public schools.

Some public primary and secondary schools in the Federal Capital Territory and its environs showed that pupils and students are suffering from poor infrastructure, with frustrated teachers being in charge.

A single mother, simply identified as Ngozi Okoro, said she was once proud of enrolling her two children in a reputable private school. However, she now struggles to maintain that standard.

According to her, petty trading and occasional support from relatives had sustained her for years, but a sudden 30 percent hike in school fees last session forced her to reconsider her decision.

“I tried everything I could; I worked extra hours, borrowing from friends but it was never enough. I had to choose between feeding my children and paying their school fees,” Okoro said with visible pain.

She, however, revealed that she is now making arrangements to transfer her children to a cheaper school this session to ease the burden.

Similarly, a father of four children, Abuh Ameh, recounted his own ordeal, saying the period always reminds him about fees.

“Every term, the school sends a reminder about fees. I feel ashamed when I cannot pay on time.

“Sometimes, my children are sent home, and they cry because they do not want to miss classes. I don’t know what to do this session,” he lamented.

In extreme cases, parents are turning to unconventional means to sustain their children’s education.

Findings revealed that a growing number of families have resorted to crowdfunding on social media to solicit assistance, while others are forced to sell personal belongings to cover tuition and other learning materials.

A widower with three children, Nuhu Ahmed, revealed that he had to part with valuable possessions to ensure his children’s return to school.

“I sold some of the things I cherished most, just so I could pay their fees and buy the books they needed,” he admitted.

An education expert, Michael Akor warned that the struggles, if unchecked, could further worsen Nigeria’s already troubling education statistics.

According to him, the country currently has more than 17 million out-of-school children, one of the highest figures globally, stressing that this threatens human capital development and the country’s long-term workforce capacity.

“Education is supposed to be a ladder out of poverty, but when it becomes unaffordable, it pushes families deeper into the same poverty cycle,” he said.

Meanwhile, a public affairs analyst, Mazi Christian Idoko advised parents to cut their coats according to their cloth.

According to him, “the most disturbing situation we have is that some parents are yet to come to terms with reality.

“This is why some of them still patronise schools that are far beyond their capacity; what they now do is to beg for assistance from one person to another.

“But my advice is that people should put their wards in schools they can afford; this will ease off tension.”