Education stakeholders in Kogi State have pledged full support for the 2025/2026 Annual School Census as the state Ministry of Education officially launched the exercise on the Federal Government’s Digital Nigeria Education Management Information System portal.
The pledge was made on Monday during a stakeholders’ sensitisation meeting at the Government House, Lokoja, ahead of the commencement of the census on June 24.
The meeting, attended by education agencies, former commissioners, NGOs, media practitioners, religious leaders, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, focused on preparations for statewide data capture and the migration from manual to digital reporting.
The Commissioner for Education, Wemi Jones, said the census provides statistical evidence for education policy formulation, planning, and resource allocation.
According to him, “Under DNEMIS, every school will receive a 10-digit ID, while each learner will be assigned a Learner Identification Number, linked to WAEC and NECO records.”
Jones stressed that every child must have a LIN to access government education incentives.
He also expressed gratitude to Governor Ahmed Ododo for prioritising education in the state through a 30 per cent annual budget allocation.
Jones said Kogi State spends huge sums annually on school renovation, payment of examination fees, construction projects, and teachers’ salaries.
He insisted that the 30 per cent allocation to education should never be reduced, saying, “That is why we are taking this annual school census programme very seriously.”
The commissioner cautioned that failure to upload data would result in under-reporting for the state.
In goodwill messages, stakeholders commended the government’s drive for accurate education data.
A former Commissioner for Education, Rosemary Osikoya, warned that “there will be no system if the structures are not there.”
She noted that some private schools often withhold complete data to evade taxes, while many educational managers, including operators of non-formal and skills acquisition centres, do not maintain proper records despite Nigeria’s data and record-keeping requirements.
“If we really want money allocated to education, it has to be substantiated by data. When education data is accurate, planning becomes effective,” she stated.
Osikoya urged all schools to check the Kogi Education EMIS and ensure their records are updated.
Amb. Idris Muraina of the Kogi NGO Network said, “Data is the lifeline of any development,” while DCC Ekigwe Raymond of the NSCDC urged collaboration with school heads to ensure safety through community-based committees and security agencies.
Representatives of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS) and the All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS) praised the ministry for carrying private schools along in policy decisions.
The Permanent Secretary, Mr Albert Alabi, reinforced the need for qualitative and accurate data.
Director of Educational Planning, Research and Statistics, Animoku Elizabeth, said the ASC is valuable but faces challenges such as incomplete data, stakeholder resistance arising from fears of taxation, and low participation.
She clarified that the ASC is meant for planning, research, and policy formulation, not taxation, noting that awareness campaigns would demonstrate how accurate data improves teaching and resource allocation.
She said the ministry would train school data officers, starting with Lokoja Local Government Area, before commencing zonal advocacy meetings.
According to her, the meetings will hold in the Western Zone on June 19 in Kabba, Kogi Central on June 22 in Okene, and Kogi East on June 23 in Anyigba.
She added that the 2025/2026 Annual School Census would officially commence on June 24.