Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, says schools that bill parents in dollars or any other foreign currency should face closure.
Speaking in Abuja during activities marking Nigeria’s Mining Week, Alake argued that collecting fees in forex fuels avoidable demand for dollars and undermines confidence in the naira. He urged regulators to enforce legal-tender rules and sanction errant institutions, noting that tighter compliance would reduce price distortions and help tame inflation.
Education stakeholders are divided. Operators of premium schools contend that currency volatility, imported textbooks, software licences and expatriate payrolls push them toward dollar-linked pricing. Parents counter that dollar billing makes education unaffordable and deepens inequality.
Legal analysts observe that Nigeria’s laws already recognise the naira as sole legal tender for domestic transactions, though certain cross-border services may legitimately be priced in foreign currency.
The enforcement question now looms large. Alake did not list specific schools or timelines, but hinted that warning notices, inspections, and sanctions could follow if voluntary compliance fails. Consumer groups are urging a hotline for whistle-blowing and a clear complaints process for parents who feel pressured to pay in dollars.
Some educationists recommend transitional arrangements, such as converting existing contracts at an agreed reference rate and publishing transparent fee breakdowns in naira. Others argue that credible enforcement across sectors, aviation, real estate and education, will be necessary to curb opportunistic dollarisation.