By Joseph Erunke, Abuja
The Federal Government has reduced the fees for textbook assessment and ranking ahead of the rollout of the National Textbook Ranking System in September 2026.
The move, announced by the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) on Wednesday, is aimed at easing the financial burden on publishers and authors while encouraging wider participation in the new textbook evaluation process.
In a statement signed by the Executive Secretary of NERDC, Prof. Salisu Shehu, the Council said the assessment fee has been reduced by 25 per cent, from N2,000 to N1,500 per page, while the ranking fee has been cut from N1 million to N750,000 per textbook title.
According to the statement, publishers and authors seeking assessment and ranking of their textbooks should begin making payments based on the revised rates with immediate effect.
NERDC also announced that publishers who had already paid the previous assessment fee of N2,000 per page would be refunded the excess amount, adding that details of the refund process would be communicated in due course.
“The revised fees take immediate effect, and all stakeholders in the book industry are expected to comply accordingly,” the Council stated.
The fee reduction comes as the Federal Government intensifies preparations for the implementation of the National Textbook Ranking System, one of the key education reforms introduced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, to improve the quality of teaching and learning materials in Nigerian schools.
Under the new policy, which takes effect in September 2026, only textbooks that have been assessed, approved and nationally ranked by NERDC will be authorised for use in schools across the country. Textbooks that fail to obtain a national ranking will no longer be approved for classroom use.
According to education authorities, the initiative is designed to curb the proliferation of substandard and duplicated textbooks while ensuring that students and teachers have access to high-quality instructional materials that align with the national curriculum.
NERDC explained that although it will continue to perform its statutory role of approving textbooks, approval alone will no longer qualify a book for classroom use under the new framework.
Instead, every approved textbook will undergo a comprehensive national evaluation by expert panels, which will assess factors including content quality, curriculum alignment, pedagogical value, accuracy and overall suitability before assigning a ranking.
The Council said the ranking system will serve as a reliable guide for schools, teachers, parents and education administrators in selecting the most appropriate textbooks for different subjects and levels of education.
It added that the reduction in assessment and ranking fees forms part of efforts to ensure a smooth transition to the new nationwide textbook quality assurance regime while encouraging greater participation by publishers and authors.
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