The federal government has launched a new national policy on drug and substance abuse in schools, aimed at addressing rising addiction among students in secondary and tertiary institutions. Speaking at the unveiling in Abuja, Minister of Education Tunji Alausa said the ministry has adopted an 80 per cent implementation and 20 per cent policy development model to ensure measurable results across all states.
Dr Alausa explained that the framework includes counselling, behavioural support and disciplinary measures for repeat offenders. He added that the ministry is revising the secondary-school curriculum to include drug-prevention content, with plans to extend similar lessons to primary schools. A new Substance Use Prevention Unit has also been created to drive implementation in partnership with the NDLEA.
The ministry and the NDLEA will introduce awareness programmes, drug-integrity testing for university and college students, and teacher training through UBEC, TETFund and the NDLEA Academy in Jos. Officials say the measures are designed to reduce drug use and strengthen safety across all levels of education.
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Meanwhile, the federal government says its new N50 million Students Venture Capital Grant has received 17,914 applications from 402 tertiary institutions. Programme Coordinator Adebayo Onigbanjo announced that more than 1,000 complete submissions have been recorded, while Dr Alausa noted that the scheme offers equity-free seed funding, mentorship and incubation support for CAC-registered student ventures in STEM and medical sciences.
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