Author and journalist Ejiro Umukoro has called on the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council to suspend its proposed textbook ranking system, warning that the policy could impose additional financial burdens on publishers, authors and parents.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE News, Umukoro criticised the proposed framework, arguing that it could worsen existing challenges within Nigeria’s publishing industry and place unnecessary pressure on stakeholders already grappling with rising costs.
“They need to pause this particular exercise they are about to start,” she said.
According to Umukoro, the framework could undermine the intellectual and financial investments of authors and publishers while contributing to increased costs within the education sector.
“It is a situation where there is a hijack of the intellectual capacity and capital outflows from publishers and authors alike,” she stated.
She noted that publishers are already operating in a difficult environment marked by escalating production costs and the absence of local paper manufacturing capacity.
“We do not have one single functional paper mill industry in Nigeria,” she said.
Umukoro questioned the rationale behind the fees attached to the proposed textbook assessment process, arguing that the additional financial obligations could threaten the sustainability of publishing businesses.
“Are you trying to make me survive or are you trying to strangle me and make sure I am dead?” she asked.
She warned that any increase in production and regulatory costs would inevitably be passed on to consumers, particularly parents who are already struggling with the rising cost of education.
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“The people who are going to suffer the consequences of all of this are parents,” she said.
The author further argued that education should not be treated as a commercial venture at the expense of students and families, stressing that policies affecting learning materials should prioritize accessibility and affordability.
“Children are no longer seen as the foundation of a society’s development,” she stated.
Umukoro also raised concerns about the transparency and methodology of the proposed ranking process, questioning how textbooks would be evaluated and graded.
“Who decides what is 70 per cent? What are the criteria?” she asked.
She maintained that key stakeholders in the publishing and education sectors were not adequately consulted before the framework was introduced and called for broader engagement before any implementation.
“We need to have a proper stakeholder meeting,” she said.
Urging the council to suspend the policy, she emphasized the need for meaningful consultations with publishers, authors, educators and other industry players.
“They should put a halt to it,” she stated.
Umukoro also pointed to unresolved curriculum implementation challenges within the education sector, arguing that existing issues should be addressed before introducing a new textbook ranking framework.
“As we speak, the last curriculum implementation has not even been effected,” she said.
She concluded by urging the NERDC to suspend the proposed textbook ranking policy and engage stakeholders in extensive consultations, warning that the current plan could increase costs for publishers and parents while creating additional challenges for Nigeria’s education system.