By Adamu Abdullahi
In Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory, teachers are sounding the alarm over reforms that have left them poorer, frustrated, and neglected.
While policymakers celebrate new initiatives aimed at modernizing education, the reality inside classrooms tells a different story one of stagnation, overcrowding, and disillusionment.
Teachers across Abuja and its satellite towns earn between ₦55,000 and ₦85,000 monthly, salaries that have remained unchanged for years.
With inflation soaring and rent in areas like Kubwa, Lugbe, and Karu doubling in the past five years, many educators find themselves unable to meet basic living costs.
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Delayed salary payments exacerbate the hardship. Several teachers disclosed that they often wait two to three months before receiving wages.
“We are expected to teach hungry children while we ourselves are hungry,” lamented a secondary school teacher in Gwagwalada, highlighting the irony of being entrusted with shaping the future while struggling to survive.
Overcrowded classrooms further strain the system. In Nyanya and Karu, class sizes average 70–90 pupils per teacher, far exceeding the recommended 35.
Teachers argue that reforms focus on curriculum adjustments and administrative restructuring but ignore the pressing issue of classroom congestion.
Welfare provisions remain inadequate. Teachers in the FCT lack housing allowances, health insurance, and reliable pension structures.
“We are treated as expendable, not professionals,” said a primary school teacher in Karu, underscoring the absence of recognition for their critical role.
The government’s Dual Mandate Policy, enacted in 2023, empowers colleges of education to award both NCE and B.Ed degrees, aiming to raise teacher quality.
While this reform is hailed as a milestone, current teachers argue it benefits future educators while leaving those already in classrooms neglected.
Union leaders in Abuja stress that reforms without welfare are hollow.
“What good is a new degree pathway if those already teaching cannot afford transport to school?” asked a representative of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), pointing to the disconnect between policy and reality.
The consequences are visible in student outcomes. Nigeria faces an alarming 89% learning poverty rate, meaning most 10-year-olds cannot read and understand a simple text.
Teachers insist that neglecting their welfare directly worsens these statistics, as demoralized educators cannot deliver quality instruction.Attrition is rising.
Many FCT teachers are leaving for private schools or abandoning the profession altogether.
Some migrate to other sectors where pay and recognition are better, draining public schools of experienced educators and leaving gaps that reforms cannot fill.
Morale collapse is another hidden crisis. Frustration and neglect fuel absenteeism and declining classroom performance.
“We love teaching, but love cannot pay bills,” said a teacher in Lugbe, visibly exhausted after a long day in an overcrowded classroom.
Experts warn that reforms ignoring teacher welfare risk systemic collapse.
Infrastructure upgrades and curriculum changes cannot succeed without motivated teachers.
“Teachers are the backbone of education; weaken them, and the system crumbles,” noted an education analyst in Abuja.
FCT teachers demand urgent action: salary reviews to reflect economic realities, timely payments, welfare packages including housing and healthcare, and inclusion in policymaking.
Until then, they insist, reforms that leave them poorer, frustrated, and neglected are not reforms at all they are failures disguised as progress.
