Benue, Nasarawa lead North-central in 2026 education budget, but none meets benchmark

Benue and Nasarawa lead North Central’s push to boost education funding in 2026, yet all six states still lag behind Nigeria’s 26 per cent benchmark.

None of the six North-central states in Nigeria met the 26 per cent education funding benchmark prescribed by the National Policy on Education, but Benue and Nasarawa have emerged as the region’s top performers in their 2026 budget allocations to education, a PREMIUM TIMES review of state budgets has shown.

Nasarawa, under Governor Abdullahi Sule, followed with 17.3 per cent of its N545.18 billion budget allocated to education, while Kogi, under Governor Ahmed Ododo, came third with 17.1 per cent.

Although the figures are below the national target, they surpass those of South-south states, where only Delta exceeded 10 per cent in the same period.

Benue led the region with an education budget of N148.73 billion. The biggest capital item in the sector is the rehabilitation and renovation of classrooms, offices, libraries, toilets and stores across schools with a disbursement plan of N3.06 billion in 2026.

However, in 2025, the state’s education allocation was as low as 14.1 per cent of a N550.11 billion budget, with N43.69 billion released from the N77.39 billion approved, representing 56.5 per cent performance.

Among the states in the region, Nasarawa has the highest out-of-school children prevalence at 25.4 per cent. The good news is that Nasarawa increased its education funding in 2026 compared with its 2025 budget.

For 2026, the state allocated N94.25 billion to education, which is 17.3 per cent of its total budget of N545.18 billion.

Its top priority project in the education sector is the ongoing construction of smart model schools in the state capital, Lafia, budgeted at N7.97 billion. The project had consumed N8.4 billion in 2025.

In 2025, Nasarawa spent N48.31 billion out of the N78.38 billion approved for the education sector, representing a 61.6 per cent budget performance rate, and recorded total revenue of N297.35 billion.

Kogi ranked third, with a N169.99 billion allocated to the education sector in its 2026 budget, representing 17.1 per cent of its N820.49 billion budget. The largest education project in the state is the N3 billion construction of the Faculty of Science at Kogi State University, Kabba.

In 2025, Kogi earmarked N73.34 billion for education, which is 12.1 per cent of its budget for that year. However, the actual release was N48.09 billion, representing 65.6 per cent of the budget performance. The state reported a total revenue of N431.10 billion.

Unlike Kogi State, which improved its education budget in 2026, Kwara State did the opposite.

Kwara, led by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has an education budget of N103.71 billion for 2026, representing 15.8 per cent of its N656.6 billion budget. The state set aside N32.49 billion for school construction and rehabilitation across its local government areas.

In 2025, Kwara dedicated N108.05 billion to education, representing 17.2 per cent of its total budget of N626.65 billion, with N53.3 billion spent, which translates to 49.3 per cent performance. The state realised N396.03 billion, about 63.2 per cent of its projected revenue for that year.

Niger State, under Governor Mohammed Bago, has the region’s largest overall budget in 2026, amounting to N1.07 trillion. However, the state allocated only N145.77 billion, or 13.6 per cent, to education. The biggest education project is the N9.22 billion provision for two lecture theatres at the IBB University.

In 2025, Niger earmarked N97.55 billion, or 8.95 per cent, to education and released N49.96 billion, a 51.2 per cent performance. The state achieved just 49.7 per cent of its projected revenue, amounting to N541.8 billion.

Plateau State, led by Governor Caleb Mutfwang, allocated N91.3 billion or 11.2 per cent of its N817.51 billion budget to education in 2026. The education project with the highest allocation is a N14 billion matching grant for constructing 101 blocks of classrooms, continuing from 2025, when N4.34 billion had been spent by September.

In 2025, the state approved N53.43 billion for education, representing 8.8 per cent of its N609.18 billion budget, with N36.47 billion released, representing 68.3 per cent performance. Actual revenue stood at N411.98 billion.