The Federal Government has released the final and comprehensive list of textbooks approved for use in all primary and secondary schools across Nigeria for the 2026 to 2028 academic period.
The list was released by the Federal Ministry of Education on Monday in Abuja after months of screening, review and ranking of books submitted by publishers.
In a major innovation, the ministry announced that every book on the approved list now carries a unique Quick Response, QR, tracking code.
According to the ministry, the QR code will make it easy for parents, teachers, school owners and regulatory officials to confirm the authenticity of any textbook in circulation.
The government explained that the initiative is designed to promote transparency and accountability in the entire process of textbook selection, procurement and distribution.
It said the move would also help to eliminate the influx of pirated, fake and unapproved books which have flooded the Nigerian market in recent years.
The approved list, the ministry clarified, represents the first phase of the ongoing national textbook ranking and endorsement exercise.
This first phase, it noted, covers pupils and students in Primary One, Primary Four, Junior Secondary School One and Senior Secondary School One.
The ministry stated that each approved textbook on the list has full details including the title of the book, names of the authors, name of the publisher, year of publication and its unique tracking code.
It added that anyone can scan the QR code with a smartphone to instantly verify if a book is truly approved by the Federal Government.
This verification system, the ministry said, will protect parents from buying counterfeit books and help schools avoid using substandard learning materials.
The ranking and approval exercise was carried out under the direct supervision of the Minister of Education, Dr. Morufu Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad.
The ministry confirmed that Dr. Alausa gave the final approval for the list after receiving the report of the national assessment committee.
It explained that the committee comprised curriculum experts, subject specialists, officials of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, NERDC, and other relevant stakeholders.
According to the ministry, the assessment was based on strict criteria including compliance with the national curriculum, quality of content, clarity of language, age appropriateness and durability.
Only textbooks that scored high in all the criteria were included in the final approved list, the ministry stressed.
The Federal Government has therefore warned all public and private schools in the country to strictly adhere to the approved list and not force pupils to buy books outside the list.
It also warned publishers, printers and booksellers to desist from printing or selling textbooks that do not carry the official QR code.
The ministry said any school or bookshop found violating the directive would face appropriate sanctions in line with extant education laws.
To ensure compliance, the ministry disclosed that monitoring and enforcement teams would be deployed to schools and markets across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Education stakeholders who reacted to the development commended the ministry, saying the QR code innovation would sanitise the textbook industry and curb intellectual theft.
They noted that the policy would ensure uniformity in teaching and learning and guarantee that Nigerian children have access to quality educational materials.
Meanwhile, the ministry has assured Nigerians that the second phase of the exercise, which will cover Primary Two, Three, Five, Six, JSS Two, Three, SS Two and Three, will be released soon.
