FCT Primary School Teachers End 3-Month Strike, Resume Classes July 9, 2025

Teachers in primary schools across Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have officially suspended their industrial action that lasted over three months and will return to classrooms starting Wednesday, July 9, 2025.

The strike, which commenced on March 24, 2025, was initially triggered by unpaid salaries and arrears owed to teachers by the six Area Councils in the FCT. The FCT wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) had insisted that classes would not resume until all outstanding entitlements were cleared.

The breakthrough came after the personal intervention of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike. Following an emergency stakeholder meeting held on July 3, 2025, attended by the House of Representatives Committees on FCT and Area Councils, the FCT Head of Service, Permanent Secretary of Treasury, NUT leadership, and other critical stakeholders, a resolution was reached.

In the communiqué released after an emergency State Wing Executive Council (SWEC) meeting, the union confirmed the suspension of the strike. The minister acknowledged that the Area Councils lack sufficient funds to meet their salary obligations and approved the immediate release of N16 billion — representing six months of 10% of the FCT’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

The funds will be used to pay:

June 2025 salaries under the new national minimum wage

60% of the nine-month salary arrears owed to primary school teachers

With this development, public primary schools in Abuja and the FCT Area Councils are set to reopen fully from July 9, 2025, bringing relief to parents, pupils, and the education sector in the nation’s capital.

This resolution highlights the ongoing challenges with funding basic education at the local government level and the increasing role of federal intervention in settling teachers’ salary disputes in the FCT.