The Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission, Hamid Bobboyi, has revealed that 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory are yet to access the 2024 Universal Basic Education matching grant.

Bobboyi disclosed this on Monday in Abuja during the Senate Committee on Education (Basic and Secondary) oversight visit to the commission.

He noted that only Katsina and Kaduna states had accessed their first and second quarters of the 2024 matching grant.

Providing details of matching grants accessed between 2020 and 2024, Bobboyi said unaccessed UBE grants remain a significant challenge for basic and junior secondary education.

“For the 2020 UBE matching grant, 34 states and the FCT have accessed it, while two states—Abia and Ogun—have not. For 2021, 33 states and the FCT have accessed it, leaving Abia, Imo, and Ogun yet to do so.

“In 2022, 29 states and the FCT accessed the grants, with Abia, Adamawa, Anambra, Ebonyi, Imo, Ogun, and Oyo yet to access theirs. For 2023, 25 states accessed the grants for the first to fourth quarters,” he said.

Bobboyi further stated that N263.04 billion and N103.29 billion, representing 2 percent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF), were allocated to the commission under the 2024 and 2023 Appropriation Acts, respectively.

He added that N103.29 billion was fully released for 2023, while N219.20 billion had been released for 2024, representing 83.33 percent of the year’s allocation.

Ranking state performances in accessing the UBE grants by geopolitical zones as of October 31, Bobboyi commended the Northwest zone for achieving 100 percent.

The South-South zone followed with 97.92 per cent, North Central with 97.76 per cent, Northeast with 97.57 per cent, Southwest with 92.28 per cent, and Southeast with 85.37 per cent.

He identified key challenges facing the commission, including a lack of political will and commitment by some state governments, low budgetary allocations to basic education at state and local government levels, and poor teacher quality.

Bobboyi added, “Non-compliance with the Federal Government’s directive on teaching history in basic schools and the high number of out-of-school children are also major issues.”

Members of the Senate Committee on Education expressed concerns over the challenges. Senator Victor Umeh lamented the high number of out-of-school children in northern states despite higher allocations.

Senator Sunday Katung called for the reintroduction of history into the basic education curriculum, citing its importance for the younger generation.

Earlier, the committee chairman, Senator Lawal Usman, commended UBEC’s efforts but urged the commission to implement the committee’s recommendations and improve its operational framework.