The 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, on Tuesday attributed the poor performance of candidates in the recently released Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results to under-investment and neglect of Nigeria’s education system.
Obi made the assertion in a statement shared via his verified social media handle, while reacting to the development.
According to him, the results highlight the consequences of decades of under-investment in education, a sector that should be central to our national development strategy.
He lamented that Bangladesh, which once lagged behind Nigeria in virtually every measurable development index, now surpasses us in all key areas, including the Human Development Index (HDI).
”While Nigeria’s total university enrollment stands at about two million students, Bangladesh’s National University alone enrolls over 3.4 million students, despite the country having only 75% of Nigeria’s population”, he stated.
Obi who was a former Anambra State governor also cited Turkey, with a population of around 87.7 million, and over seven million university students — more than three times Nigeria’s total.
He said, “Education is the most critical driver of national development and the most powerful tool for lifting people out of poverty. If we are serious about building a prosperous, secure, and equitable Nigeria, we must invest aggressively in education at all levels.
Data from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), revealed that 1,955,069 candidates sat for the 2025 UTME. Out of this number, only about 420,000 scored above 200, while over 1.5 million candidates failed to meet the 200-mark threshold — representing more than 78% of all candidates.
