Edino Chubiyo Cornelius 
ABUJA, Nigeria – The Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) has reduced textbook assessment fees, cutting the assessment charge from ₦2,000 to ₦1,500 per page and lowering the cost of ranking a textbook from ₦1 million to ₦750,000 per title, as preparations intensify for the Federal Government’s National Textbook Ranking System. The revised charges take immediate effect.
The Executive Secretary of NERDC, Prof. Salisu Shehu, announced the new fee structure on Wednesday in Abuja, saying the reduction is intended to ease the financial burden on publishers and authors seeking approval for instructional materials.
NERDC also says publishers who have already paid the previous assessment fee will receive refunds for the excess amount, adding that details of the refund process will be communicated in due course.
The fee review comes ahead of the rollout of the National Textbook Ranking System, scheduled to begin in September 2026. The initiative, introduced by the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, aims to improve the quality, accuracy and curriculum compliance of textbooks used in schools across Nigeria.
Under the new framework, only textbooks that have been assessed, approved and ranked by NERDC will be eligible for use in classrooms from September, while books that fail to meet the prescribed standards will not be approved for school use.
According to the council, the ranking system is designed to provide learners and teachers with access to high-quality, curriculum-compliant learning materials through a transparent national evaluation process.
Education stakeholders say the reforms are expected to raise publishing standards, improve the quality of instructional materials and strengthen learning outcomes across Nigeria’s education sector.
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