The federal government says it will institutionalise the National Learning Assessment (NLA) every three years as part of efforts to tackle learning poverty and improve the quality of education across the country.

The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this yesterday in Abuja after monitoring the ongoing 2026 National Learning Assessment in selected public and private schools in the FCT.

The minister visited Government Secondary School (GSS), Kuje; Junior Secondary School (JSS), Kuje Central; and Topaz Model School, Kuje, to assess the exercise.

Alausa said the assessment, which covers Primary Three, Primary Five, JSS Two and Senior Secondary School (SSS) Two pupils and students, was designed to evaluate literacy, numeracy and cognitive skills.

He said the exercise would henceforth be conducted every three years, adding that the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) had been directed to make budgetary provision for it from 2029.

“The importance of learning assessment is that we need to know the kind of education we are giving our pupils and students at the primary, junior secondary and senior secondary levels to determine whether they are actually learning.

“It is a standard tool that helps us evaluate the quality of education being delivered across different school levels.

“The last assessment was conducted in 2023 by UBEC, while the previous one was held in 2019 by the Federal Ministry of Education. Going forward, it will become a routine exercise every three years,” he said.

The minister said the assessment had become necessary in view of Nigeria’s learning poverty challenge, noting that available data showed millions of children could not read age-appropriate texts by the age of 10.

According to him, previous reports indicated that more than 42 million Nigerian children were classified as learning poor, although the figure was based on earlier data.

He expressed optimism that ongoing education reforms would improve learning outcomes, saying the assessment would generate updated data to guide evidence-based policymaking.

“We need accurate data to benchmark our literacy and numeracy levels and develop targeted interventions that will improve learning outcomes across the country,” he said.

Alausa also said the Federal Government had harmonised multiple learning assessment frameworks into a single national assessment system to ensure consistency and enable comparison of learning outcomes over time.

According to him, the initiative is part of the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative and aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s agenda to transform the education sector as a foundation for national development.

Speaking on private schools, the minister commended their role in expanding access to education, noting that they had helped keep many children in school who might otherwise have been out of the classroom.

He, however, stressed the need for stronger regulation to ensure compliance with minimum standards.