Lagos State Government must reverse its decision to increase school fees at LASU, says SERAP

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) today expressed concerns about the recent decision by the Lagos government to increase fees at LASU at a time the majority of the populace find themselves in abject poverty. According to reports, fresh undergraduates of the Lagos State University (LASU) would now pay new school fees of 65,000, while returning students would pay 50,000. LASU students had protested the new fees regime, describing this as “exorbitant in view of the hash economic reality in the country”.

This situation is clearly unacceptable given that many Nigerians continue to face conditions characterized by sustained or chronic deprivation of resources, capabilities, choices, security and power necessary for the enjoyment of internationally recognized economic and social rights, including the right to education. Every child in Nigeria, including Lagos has the right to education. As an empowering right, education is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalized adults and children can lift themselves out of poverty and obtain the means to participate fully in their communities.

Education is one of the best financial investments States can make, and the right to education is internationally recognized including under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to which Nigeria is a party. Adetokunbo Mumuni, Executive Director of SERAP, stated, “Education must be available to all and free from discrimination.

Education must be affordable for all students. However, increased school fees will make the enjoyment of the right to education a distant goal for many students, especially the most vulnerable groups. It is therefore incumbent upon States to avoid measures that hinder or prevent the enjoyment of the right to education”. Many LASU students cannot avoid current fees because of the economic and social circumstances of their parents or guardians.

They should not be denied education simply because they do not possess the means to pay for it. “Subjecting these students to a regime of unreasonable school fees is retrogressive and amounts to a de facto discrimination on basis of social status”, stated Mumuni. As early as 1998, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the body established to oversee the implementation of the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights deplored the increase in university fees, and called on the Nigerian government to guarantee equality of access to higher education. The decision by the Lagos state government to impose exorbitant school fees on the mostly poor students at LASU is inconsistent with this recommendation.

SERAP is therefore calling on the Lagos State government to:
•Immediately reverse its decision to increase school fees at LASU

•Ensure that a respectable educational fellowship system is in place to assist disadvantaged students


Back to Previous Page