FG Cancels Mother Tongue Policy, Declares English Sole Medium of Instruction in Schools

The Federal Government has officially scrapped the national policy mandating the use of indigenous languages as the medium of instruction in Nigerian schools, declaring English as the sole language of instruction from primary to tertiary levels.

The announcement was made by Education Minister Dr. Tunji Alausa during the 2025 Language in Education International Conference, organized by the British Council in Abuja on Wednesday.

The now-cancelled National Language Policy (NLP), approved in 2022, had required that children from Early Childhood Education to Primary Six be taught primarily in their mother tongue or the language of their immediate community.

The policy was aimed at promoting indigenous languages, affirming their equal status, and improving learning outcomes in early education, while English remained the official language for later stages of schooling.

Dr. Alausa explained that the decision to abandon the policy was informed by extensive data analysis revealing that the use of mother tongue instruction had negatively affected student performance in national examinations.

According to the minister, children taught in their indigenous languages recorded higher failure rates in WAEC, NECO, and JAMB, particularly in regions where the policy was heavily implemented.

“We have seen a mass failure rate in WAEC, NECO, and JAMB in certain geopolitical zones of the country, and those are the ones that adopted this mother tongue instruction in an over-subscribed manner. This is about evidence-based governance. English now stands as the medium of instruction from pre-primary through tertiary education,” he said.

Dr. Alausa further noted that the use of mother tongue instruction over the past 15 years had, in some areas, “literally destroyed education,” stressing that policy decisions must be guided by evidence rather than emotions. He encouraged stakeholders who disagreed with the decision to present verifiable data to support their positions.

The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmed, highlighted complementary efforts to improve foundational learning, including the introduction of a new training package for teachers in literacy and numeracy across pre-primary to primary three levels. The programme is designed to equip educators with effective strategies for teaching foundational literacy and numeracy skills.

The British Council, represented by Country Director Donna McGowan, reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Nigeria’s education reforms, including teacher professional development, school leadership, and language proficiency initiatives.
The policy shift signals a significant change in Nigeria’s approach to education, emphasizing English-language instruction as a tool to improve learning outcomes nationwide while continuing to recognize the cultural value of indigenous languages outside formal education.