The Federal High Court in Lagos has delivered a landmark judgment compelling the Federal Government, Nigeria’s 36 states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to guarantee free, compulsory, and universal basic education for every Nigerian child of primary and junior secondary school age.
Justice D.E. Osiagor, who issued the ruling on October 9, 2025, affirmed that all tiers of government are bound by law to implement the Compulsory, Free Universal Basic Education Act of 2004.
The case was instituted by human rights lawyer Femi Falana, SAN, and Hauwa Mustapha, representing themselves and the civil society coalition Alliance on Surviving Covid-19 and Beyond (ASCAB).
Free Basic Education Is a Legal Right, Not a Policy Choice
In the judgment, the court held that the UBE Act gives concrete legal force to the right to basic education, making it enforceable against government authorities.
Justice Osiagor ruled that once the National Assembly passed legislation operationalising the constitutional directive on education, the obligations under that law became fully justiciable.
“The provisions of Sections 2(1) and 11(2) of the UBE Act are binding on all Respondents,” the judge declared, affirming that government agencies cannot treat children’s educational rights as optional or aspirational.
Applicants Have Legal Standing to Sue
On the question of whether the applicants had the right to file the case, the court adopted a progressive view of public-interest litigation.
Justice Osiagor noted that Nigerian courts must not hinder citizens seeking to enforce fundamental public rights.
He held that both Falana and Mustapha demonstrated sufficient interest, explaining that enforcing educational rights affects millions of children and carries broad constitutional significance.
Issue One was therefore resolved in favour of the applicants.
Accessing Federal UBE Grants Not Mandatory
A significant portion of the case centered on whether states were acting illegally by declining to contribute counterpart funding required to draw from the Universal Basic Education matching grants — funds the applicants said amounted to N68 billion in unaccessed allocations.
While condemning states’ failure to utilise available education funding, the court ruled that refusing to access the federal grant does not, by itself, constitute illegality.
Justice Osiagor clarified that Section 11(2) of the UBE Act makes a 50% state contribution a condition for accessing federal assistance, not a compulsory obligation on every state.
The judge noted that the Act describes federal intervention as “assistance,” which states may lawfully decline, provided they still meet their independent duty to fund basic education.
“It may be poor policy and detrimental to children for States to refuse available grants,” the judge warned, “but such refusal is not automatically a breach of Section 11(2).
What is unlawful is the failure to provide free and compulsory basic education, not the failure to draw from federal assistance.”
Implications of the Judgment
The ruling affirms that:
– All levels of government have a statutory duty to deliver free basic education.
– Civil society groups can sue to enforce this duty.
– States are not legally compelled to access federal UBE funds, but must still fulfil their educational obligations.
The judgment is expected to intensify public scrutiny of state governments that have repeatedly failed to claim billions in matching grants while millions of Nigerian children remain out of school.
The certified true copy of the ruling was obtained on Wednesday.
