The Nigerian Government has approved a reduction in fees for the assessment and ranking of textbooks ahead of the implementation of the National Textbook Ranking System.
The Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) announced the review in a statement signed by its Executive Secretary, Salisu Shehu, on Wednesday.
Under the revised rates, the assessment fee has been reduced from ₦2,000 to ₦1,500 per page, while the ranking fee has been cut from ₦1 million to ₦750,000 per textbook title.
NERDC said publishers and authors are to begin making payments based on the new rates with immediate effect.
The council also disclosed that publishers who had already paid the previous assessment fee would receive refunds of the excess amount, adding that the refund procedure would be announced later.
The fee reduction comes ahead of the National Textbook Ranking System, which will take effect in September 2026.
Under the new policy, only textbooks assessed, approved and ranked by NERDC will be allowed for use in Nigerian classrooms, while unranked textbooks will not be permitted.
The initiative, introduced by the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Alausa, aims to standardise instructional materials, improve quality and ensure that only curriculum-compliant textbooks are used in schools.
According to the policy, approved textbooks will undergo a structured national evaluation and ranking process by expert committees to identify the most suitable learning materials for each subject and educational level.