By Stephen Simon
State governments across Nigeria have been reported to have left N264.12 billion in Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) matching grants unspent, despite persistent challenges confronting public schools.
The figures, contained in UBEC’s 2025 annual report, relate to financial monitoring visits conducted on July 21, 2025, when the commission found that the funds remained unutilised in state government accounts.
The report was highlighted in newspaper coverage on October 29, 2026, renewing concerns about the management of education intervention funds and the condition of public schools.
Benue State recorded the highest reported balance of N19.18 billion, followed by Imo with N14.12 billion, Osun with N14.02 billion, Kwara with N13.99 billion and Delta with N13.40 billion.
The five states accounted for N74.72 billion, representing approximately 28.3 per cent of the total reported unspent funds.
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), criticised the failure to utilise resources earmarked for basic education and called on state governments to ensure that the funds benefit pupils.
However, explanations and responses from some states have complicated the picture.Osun State Commissioner for Education, Dipo Eluwole, attributed his state’s difficulty in accessing fresh matching grants to financial constraints and the inability to provide the required counterpart funding.
He said the administration had cleared outstanding counterpart-funding obligations covering five years but was still facing difficulties raising subsequent contributions.
Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board Chairman, Raheem Adaramaja, also disputed the reported balance attributed to the state, although he did not provide an alternative figure.
The report does not establish whether the balances have changed since the July 2025 monitoring exercise or explain the circumstances surrounding every state’s position.
Nevertheless, the findings have renewed calls for transparency, accountability and improved funding of basic education, particularly as many public schools continue to struggle with inadequate classrooms, furniture and learning materials
