Textbook policy sparks fears over costs, competition, access

By Damiete Braide
A former President of the Booksellers Association of Nigeria, Dare Oluwatuyi, has raised concerns over the Federal Government’s new textbook ranking policy and increased review fees by the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), warning that the measures could threaten Nigeria’s book industry and increase the financial burden on parents.
Oluwatuyi, who is also the immediate past Chairman of the Nigerian Book Fair Trust, said although the government’s decision to strengthen textbook quality control was understandable, the implementation of the policy could have serious consequences for publishers, authors, printers, booksellers, schools, stude...