FG unveils national policy on drug abuse in schools

The federal government on Monday unveiled the national policy on drug and substance abuse in schools, marking a significant step toward tackling the rising rate of addiction among students in secondary schools and tertiary institutions.

Speaking at the launch in Abuja, the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, said the ministry has adopted an 80 per cent implementation and 20 per cent policy development model “in line with international standards,” stressing that education reforms must now translate into measurable outcomes across all states.

Alausa commended UNESCO, UNICEF, and other development partners for their continued support for Nigeria’s education sector, noting that the new policies were designed to strengthen existing frameworks or fill critical gaps where none previously existed.

“This is the first time Nigeria is developing a national policy and implementation guideline on drug abuse in schools,” he said.

He explained that the framework incorporates counselling and behavioural support mechanisms but warned that government would not hesitate to punish repeat offenders.

As part of the broader effort to combat drug abuse, the ministry has begun revising the secondary-school curriculum to include drug-prevention lessons, with plans to extend similar content to primary schools.

A new Substance Use Prevention Unit has also been launched to steer nationwide implementation. In partnership with the NDLEA, the ministry will roll out awareness programmes, including lectures, competitions, and parent outreach, as well as compulsory drug-integrity testing for new, returning, and randomly selected students in universities and colleges.

Additionally, UBEC and TETFund will collaborate with the NDLEA Academy in Jos to train teachers and strengthen support systems, aiming to reduce drug use and its adverse effects on learning and school safety across all levels of education.

FG launches N50m grant for student startups

Meanwhile, the federal government’s newly launched N50 million Students Venture Capital Grant (S-VCG) has attracted 17,914 applications from 402 tertiary institutions nationwide.

National Programme Coordinator, Adebayo Onigbanjo, announced the figures during the official launch in Abuja, noting that applications were drawn from 346 public and 56 private universities, with over 1,000 complete submissions already logged.

The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, described the impressive response as evidence of students’ growing appetite for innovation.

He said the S-VCG was a strategic investment under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda aimed at identifying high-potential student ventures and strengthening a culture of creativity on campuses.

The grant provides up to N50m in equity-free seed funding, alongside mentorship, incubation and access to tools essential for scaling ideas.

The programme is jointly implemented by the Ministry of Education and TETFund, with support from the Bank of Industry, Afara Initiative, AfriLabs, the Entrepreneurship and Skills Development Centre and Google.

Alausa said the scheme targeted full-time undergraduates from year three upward, as well as master’s and PhD candidates with CAC-registered ventures in STEM and medical sciences.

He added that 250,000 students were targeted in the first cohort, with over 100,000 already in training at 1,620 centres nationwide.

He also highlighted the Tertiary Institution Staff Support Fund (TISSF) which offers interest-free loans of up to N10m, with nearly 4,000 beneficiaries so far.

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