Nigeria to Enforce Strict National Ranking for School Textbooks; Unranked Materials Banned from September

Education Minister Tunji Alausa announces a national ranking system for school textbooks. Unranked books will be banned from Nigerian classrooms starting September 2026.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 27, 2026, 5:29 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Peoples Gazette.

Standardizing Educational Resources

The Federal Government of Nigeria is taking decisive steps to regulate the quality of instructional materials through the introduction of a national textbook ranking system. Education Minister Tunji Alausa stated on Monday that the initiative aims to strengthen quality assurance across primary, junior, and senior secondary schools. By implementing a structured evaluation process, the government intends to address the current "proliferation" of textbooks, ensuring that students and teachers interact only with high-quality, curriculum-compliant resources.

The Role of NERDC and Expert Committees

While the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) will maintain its statutory authority to approve textbooks, the new system adds a layer of competitive evaluation. The NERDC is set to establish Standing Subject Committees composed of academic and pedagogical experts. These committees will conduct rigorous reviews of all submitted materials, ranking a limited number of books for each subject. This shift moves the process beyond simple licensing toward a merit-based hierarchy of the "most suitable" options for Nigerian students.

Mandatory Compliance and Prohibitions

A critical aspect of the new policy is its enforcement mechanism: any textbook that is not officially ranked under this new system will be strictly prohibited for classroom use. Minister Alausa clarified that this ban applies regardless of whether a book held a prior license or approval. This move is expected to significantly prune the excessive number of titles currently in circulation, which the ministry believes has led to confusion and inconsistent educational standards across different states and institutions.