Contentious allocations in the budget are actually National Assembly members' constituency projects, according to the Almajiri commission

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The National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children’s Education on Tuesday distanced itself from controversial projects contained in its 2026 Appropriation Act.

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It stated that the projects were not conceived by the Commission but were National Assembly constituency projects assigned to it for implementation.

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The clarification followed a Daily Trust report on the inclusion of projects perceived to be outside the Commission’s statutory mandate in the 2026 Federal Budget.

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The report raised questions over why an agency established to address the Almajiri system and Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis was earmarked to implement projects considered unrelated to its core education mandate.

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Reacting in a statement issued by the Special Assistant on Media and Communications to the Executive Secretary of the commission, Nura Muhammad, the commission said the projects in question formed part of constituency interventions captured in the Appropriation Act and allocated to it in line with existing budgetary practice.

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“The Commission wishes to clarify that these projects are National Assembly constituency projects incorporated into the 2026 Appropriation Act for implementation through the Commission,” the statement said.

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According to the Commission, assigning constituency projects to Ministries, Departments and Agencies for execution has been a long-standing feature of Nigeria’s federal budgeting process.

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It explained that once such projects are included in the Appropriation Act and assigned to an agency, the agency is legally obligated to implement them in accordance with established financial and procurement regulations.

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“As part of a duly enacted federal budget, every project assigned to the Commission forms part of its implementation responsibilities and will be executed in strict compliance with extant laws, financial regulations and due procurement processes,” it stated.

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While responding to the controversy, the Commission stressed that its statutory mandate remains unchanged.

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It reaffirmed that its core responsibility is to coordinate national efforts aimed at reforming the Almajiri education system and addressing the country’s large population of out-of-school children through policies and programmes that expand access to quality education.

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The Commission said it remains committed to strengthening Almajiri education, supporting state governments and other stakeholders, and implementing interventions that directly improve the lives of vulnerable children across Nigeria.

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Highlighting its achievements, NCAOOSCE disclosed that it has successfully identified and profiled more than 700,000 out-of-school children nationwide.

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It added that it has established 119 learning centres across the country, intensified ward-to-ward advocacy and community mobilisation campaigns, and continued efforts to implement the National Policy on Almajiri Education aimed at reforming the system and addressing the social challenges associated with it.

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“The Commission further reassures the public that it will continue to pursue its core mandate with renewed vigour,” the statement added.

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The Commission also acknowledged the support of the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Maruf Alausa, and the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, pledging to remain focused on ensuring that every Nigerian child has access to quality education and the opportunity to realise his or her full potential.

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It reiterated that addressing the plight of Almajiri and out-of-school children remains its foremost priority.

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The statement follows heightened public debate over the 2026 Appropriation Act after several budget entries assigned to federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies were reported to be outside the statutory mandates of the implementing institutions. The disclosures have fuelled concerns over the continued use of constituency projects in the federal budget and renewed calls for greater transparency, accountability and alignment between agencies’ legal responsibilities and the projects they execute.

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Under Nigeria’s budget implementation framework, lawmakers nominate constituency projects during the appropriation process, while the projects are subsequently assigned to relevant MDAs for execution after the budget is passed into law. Consequently, implementing agencies often execute projects they neither proposed nor originated but are legally required to deliver once they become part of the Appropriation Act.

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Established under the Federal Ministry of Education, the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children’s Education is mandated to coordinate policies and interventions aimed at reforming the Almajiri education system, reducing the number of out-of-school children and improving access to basic education for vulnerable children across the country. The Commission’s clarification comes as the Federal Government intensifies efforts to tackle Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis, one of the largest in the world, through reforms and targeted education interventions.

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