Nigeria on Monday announced a special salary scale and longer years of service for basic and secondary teachers in the country.
These measures have been approved by President Muhammadu Buhari, Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, announced at the in commemoration of the 2020 World Teachers Day.
He said Buhari had raised the length of service before retirement for teachers to 40 from 35 years.
The government will also give tuition- free and automatic admission for biological children of teachers in the schools where they teach, to encourage them remain in the system.
Adamu explained that the implementation of the new teachers’ salary scheme was to encourage them to improve on their service delivery.
“Government notes the emergency situation in our educational system with particular reference to the dearth of qualified and dedicated teachers to enhance the quality of teaching and learning at all levels of our educational system” President Buhari said.
“To address these challenge and set our country on the path of industrialisation where our educational system will produce the needed skills and manpower, I have approved the following:
“The reintroduction of bursary award to education students in Universities and College of Education with assurance of automatic employment upon graduation, payment of stipends to Bachelor of Education students as well as granting them automatic employment after graduation is now a government policy.
“The Tertiary Education Fund will now fund teaching practice in Universities and Colleges of Education, special salary scale for teachers in basic and secondary schools including provisions for rural posting allowance, science teachers allowance and peculiar allowance.
“Special teacher pension scheme to enable the teaching profession retain its experienced talent as well as extend teachers retirement age to 65 years and teachers service years to 40, create a career path policy for teaching profession in Nigeria and, teachers conversion programme and ICT training to mitigate the current dearth of qualified teachers in the school system.”
The president asked Adamu to work in collaboration with states and local governments, the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, National Salaries, Incomes and Commission and other relevant agencies in the system, to ensure accelerated implementation of these policies and measures.
