The Nigerian government has announced the cancellation of a policy that required teaching in indigenous languages in the earliest years of schooling. Education Minister Tunji Alausa said the programme, introduced three years ago, failed to deliver and is being scrapped immediately.

English will now be reinstated as the medium of instruction from pre-primary through university. The programme was initially launched by former Education Minister Adamu Adamu, who argued that children learn more effectively in their mother tongue, a view supported by UN studies on early childhood education.

Nigeria’s education system faces challenges such as poor-quality teaching, inadequate materials, low teacher pay, and frequent strikes. Although 85% of children attend primary school, fewer than half complete secondary education, and about 10 million children are out of school, the highest number worldwide.

Dr Alausa cited poor academic results from areas that had implemented mother-tongue teaching. Data from WAEC, NECO, and JAMB showed high failure rates in these regions.

The reversal has sparked mixed reactions. Some experts and parents support the move, citing the lack of trained teachers for numerous indigenous languages and the importance of early English proficiency. Education expert Dr Aliyu Tilde noted that major exams are conducted in English, and Nigeria is not prepared to teach in dozens of local languages.

Parents like Hajara Musa welcomed the change, saying learning English early helps children in a globalized world. Others, such as social affairs analyst Habu Dauda, argue that ending the policy after just three years was premature and that more time and investment were needed for it to succeed.

The debate underscores Nigeria’s ongoing struggle to balance the promotion of its linguistic heritage with the practical demands of a national curriculum and the global importance of English.