Nigeria, April 16 -- Despite being major beneficiaries of the oil revenue windfall, all the south-south states failed to meet the 26 per cent education funding benchmark in their 2026 budgets.

The Federal Ministry of Education's National Policy on Education in Nigeria prescribes a 26 per cent allocation benchmark for both federal and subnational governments.

PREMIUM TIMES analysis of the approved budgets shows that none of the states in the region allocated up to the recommended threshold to education, covering personnel, overhead and capital expenditure.

The states are Delta, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Bayelsa, Edo and Rivers.

The findings stand in stark contrast to the situation in the South-east region, where states with comparatively...