The National Association of Niger State Students (NANISS) has announced plans for a mass protest over what it described as government neglect of the education sector and failure to pay students’ scholarships.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the students said the decision followed over a year of broken promises and worsening conditions in schools, including dilapidated infrastructure and stalled scholarship payments.
NANISS explained that it had tried every avenue of dialogue before arriving at the decision to protest. According to the group, it engaged state representatives, traditional leaders, held emergency student forums, and even organised special fasting and prayers without any meaningful response from the government.
“Having patiently waited for more than one year and after exhausting all consultations without results, we are compelled to take action,” the statement read.
The group gave the Niger State Government a seven-day ultimatum to address its concerns, warning that if there was no concrete response, it would mobilise a peaceful mass protest across the state.
“We remain peaceful and committed to ensuring that the rights of Niger State students are respected and protected,” NANISS added.
This development comes amid mounting concerns about the state of education in Niger. Recently, civic tech organisation MonITNG raised alarm over the deplorable condition of Government Technical College, Bida, which has fallen into disrepair despite huge allocations and intervention funds.
The watchdog noted that while the government claims to allocate 70% of the 2025 state budget to education and health, billions in Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) intervention funds remain unused.
“Education should not be a privilege; it is the foundation of development. Niger State cannot continue like this,” MonITNG stressed, warning that neglecting technical education deprives youths of critical vocational skills needed for economic growth.
