President Bola Tinubu has revealed that he worked as a taxi driver in the United States to fund his university education, saying the experience shaped his commitment to expanding educational opportunities for Nigerian children.
In a post on his X handle on Wednesday, Tinubu said he arrived in the US as a young man and had to postpone starting school for several months to save enough money. He eventually moved to Chicago, where he worked different jobs to pay his way through university .
“When I first arrived in the United States as a young man, I drove a taxi to earn money for my education. I even had to postpone starting school for several months to save enough,” he said .
“When I eventually got to Chicago, I worked different jobs to support myself and pay my way through university. I know what it means to worry about tuition, accommodation and how to make ends meet while pursuing an education” .
The President said those experiences stayed with him and informed his belief that every Nigerian child deserves the same opportunity, regardless of where they are born or what their parents can afford.
Tinubu used the post to highlight his administration’s investments in education, led by the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, which he said has provided over N372 billion in student loans for institutional fees and upkeep .
He also disclosed that the government’s technical and vocational education programme has attracted over 2.8 million applications, with 38 technical colleges rehabilitated. Students in federal and selected state technical colleges now benefit from free school fees, boarding, textbooks and uniforms .
On university education, Tinubu said his administration reached a new agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities providing for a 40 per cent increase in academic staff remuneration and measures to improve stability .
“A four-year course must take four years. Our young people deserve to complete their education on time and get on with their lives,” he said .
In medical education, the President said N110 billion is being invested in rehabilitating 24 medical schools. Annual nursing enrolment has increased from 28,000 to 115,000, while medical and dental enrolment has risen from 5,000 to 12,000 .
He also said over one million children who were previously out of school have been returned to learning, while the government is investing in teacher development, expanding educational opportunities for girls and implementing a new national curriculum that restores Nigerian History to classrooms .
“Our children must know where we have come from, understand the country they belong to, and be prepared to take responsibility for its future,” he said .
Tinubu commended the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, the Minister of State, Professor Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, and the education team for developing an interactive A-Z of the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative.
He invited Nigerians to visit edu4pbat.ng to explore the platform and provide feedback on challenges affecting education in their communities.
“The circumstances of a child’s birth should never determine the limits of their ambition. Our responsibility is to give every Nigerian child a fair chance to fulfil their potential,” he said .
“We have more work to do, and I am determined to see it through” .
