For years, wealthy Nigerians have sent their children to prestigious British boarding schools – but now, some of these institutions are building campuses in Africa’s most populous country.
Last year, Charterhouse opened an elementary school in Lagos City and will open a middle school in September this year.
Rugby schools will also offer secondary education in September. Other well-known institutions such as Millfield, Wellington School and Harrow are also exploring opportunities in Nigeria.
Apparently, it all brings prices to Nigerian parents – but the country’s wealthy elite have traditionally sent their children to the UK for secondary education and attracted the rigor, prestige and global opportunities of the UK curriculum.
Karima Oyede, management consultant for Britain Nigeria, said: “I am really excited about it.
Her family has been planning to move to Nigeria for a while, but has not done so earlier due to the education of their children.
“It is the best of both worlds to have the opportunity to experience the British system in his country of origin,” she said.
“African parents like the fact that they give their children international status…but they don’t want their children to lose Africa-“
Nigeria has already had a rampant presence of private schools, but the country’s internationally recognized high quality, internationally recognized education will attract many parents, especially those who wish to maintain the cultural identity of their children.
“African parents love that they give their children internationally so that they can compete with their opponents anywhere else in the world, but they don’t want their children to lose Africans,” said Ijay Uwakwe-Okoronkwo, founder of the Nigeria Learning Foundation of Nigeria.
The education consultant, who advises parents and schools on international boarding options, explained that children return with children after attending school abroad and is not always appreciated.
This cultural dilemma extends to growing conversations around LGBTQ issues. In Nigeria, homosexual relationships and public emotional manifestations are illegal and there is no public discussion or promotion of homosexuality.
This is a new crop that new British schools attract. For example, while the British Charter shows the rainbow flag, Nigerian schools do not.
“We are an independent British school, but we are determined to sit in the cultural needs of Nigeria,” said John Todd, principal of the Charter of Nigeria.
“There is a huge concern for Western cultural perspectives.
“For parents here, we know that this is a very big problem. This is why parents are worried about British schools.
“I didn’t make a judgment – just that.”
He acknowledged that British institutions in Nigeria had no choice but to “comply with the land law.”
Charterhouse recognizes Nigeria’s deep religious society and also allows parents to take home from host families for Sunday church services and expects them to return on Monday morning.
Teachers in the Lagos Charter are often British expats [Charterhouse]
Reasons for the growing interest of prestigious British schools in open campuses in Nigeria.
Although regions such as the Middle East and China are already full of international schools, Africa is a relatively virgin territory.
“Nigeria is the gateway to Africa, the last continent established by British schools,” said Mark Brooks, export champion of the British Ministry of Commerce and Trade.
He organizes annual events in Nigeria, where around 20 British schools meet potential students and parents.
Mr Brooks said: “Nigeria has a great reputation for fostering students with drive-in high-level students.”
“I have brought hundreds of class teachers to Nigeria over the years and in the UK we need to take Nigeria seriously.
“I don’t have a school I work with and haven’t recently been a Nigerian student who has served as a boy or a deputy boy. A student can join the sixth form and end up being the principal within a year.
“I have brought hundreds of class teachers to Nigeria over the years and in the UK we need to take Nigeria seriously.”
Schedule also proved key, as the cost of sending children to the UK soared. Just three years ago, the exchange rate of the local currency was 500 naira to 1 pound; now its naira is 2200 naira.
Most importantly, the British Labor government recently charged a 20% VAT on private schools.
In addition to tuition, families face additional fees such as flights from students and visiting parents.
Establishing these schools in Nigeria allows families to maintain the same level of education while greatly reducing financial stress.
For example, the annual cost of Charterhouse in the UK is about £60,000 ($78,000), while its Lagos campus costs about £15,000.
“Our main classroom teachers are expats, but 90% of the staff are locals,” Mr Todd said.
By hiring locals to serve as assistant teachers, administration, finance, human resources, marketing, facilities, security, gardeners, drivers, PAS and secretary, schools can significantly reduce costs compared to the UK, where the UK’s labor force is much more expensive.
There is already a huge educational gap in Nigeria, and many parents choose private education in all kinds of qualities. Many people struggle to pay higher fees rather than sending their children to public schools, which are usually free but plagued by trained teachers and frequent strikes.
As a result, the arrival of British schools may not significantly change the education system in Nigeria.
However, they may pose a threat to elite schools established, such as the British International School in Lagos and the Abuja Regent School, which opened in the early 2000s.
These schools have long been the best choice for those who can pay annual tuition fees that usually reach tens of thousands of dollars.
Brooks, who is in charge of school marketing, said: “Nigerian rugby schools are also about to support, develop and learn to the current schools in Nigeria.”
“We will also help build partnerships, teacher training and a range of initiatives.”
Private tuition fees in the UK are no longer exempt from VAT since January [AFP]
Mr Todd believes that the Nigerian market is large enough to accommodate all new schools without threatening existing ones. Of the 200 million people, about 40% of the population are less than 14.
He hopes to feel the greatest impact in the UK.
Although the UK charter usually has a longer waiting list and should not be affected, fewer boarding schools may decline due to new competition in Nigeria.
“There is a very strong interest in our secondary schools,” Mr Todd said. “We have Nigerian parents in the UK sending their children to Nigeria’s charter September.”
In fact, connecting with Nigerians in the UK has always been one of their key marketing strategies.
He added: “You got this Prime Minister’s brand for a lower price and every Nigerian has an aunt or uncle from Lagos.”
This may be the trend that extends to UK universities. Nigeria’s higher education system faces greater challenges than its secondary sectors, with many students choosing to study abroad.
According to the UK government, Nigeria ranks among the top ten countries in the UK student visas in 2023.
But with foreign exchange difficulties and strict visa regulations, studying abroad has become increasingly challenging – universities that rely on higher international tuition fees seem to be suffering.
Earlier this month, Parliamentary Education Committee Chairman Helen Hayes, acknowledged that the UK’s higher education sector was in trouble.
“Doctors of universities are laying off employees and cutting courses in an attempt to keep uncertainty in the uncertainty of their money coming,” she said in announcing a meeting.
If enough Nigerian students can no longer study in the UK, then British universities may come to them like the rest of the world.
In fact, the University of Ibadan, the Prime Minister’s University of Nigeria, was founded in 1948 and is the campus of the University of London, awarding degrees of the same value and reputation.
Ms. Uwakwe-Okoronkwo believes that many Nigerian parents would appreciate the opportunity because if they choose to do so, it will allow their children to stay in Nigeria long enough to mature before moving abroad.
“Many parents are worried about sending their children out of the nest too early,” she said.
For Ms Oyede, his daughter will also start at the rugby school in Lagos in September, and the timing couldn’t have been better.
She said the opening of British schools was already a “motivation to return home.”
The prospect of university opportunities will be a welcome reward.
Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani is a freelance Nigerian journalist and novelist living in Abuja and London.
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