By joshua Kogi State 2025/2026 Annual School Census Kicks Off June 24 As State Migrates To DNEMIS Portal
…. Ministry trains data officers, begins sensitization for Principals, Data Officers
Kogi State Government will commence the 2025/2026 Annual School Census on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, as the Ministry of Education moves all data collection to the new Digital Nigeria Education Management Information System, DNEMIS. The migration marks a major shift from previous manual uploads and is expected to give the state real-time, verified education data for planning and resource allocation.
The disclosure was made by Dr. Elizabeth Animoku, Director Planning and Statistics, Kogi State Ministry of Education, during a stakeholders’ sensitisation meeting on the 2025/2026 Annual School Census held at the Banquet Hall of the State Government House. She said the Annual School Census is an official survey that gathers information about schools within the state’s education system, similar to a population census but focused on educational institutions. The exercise is crucial for informing and transforming the educational landscape because it provides the statistical evidence needed for sector policies, plans, strategies, decisions, and resource allocation. Accurate data on school enrollment, teacher numbers, and facilities helps ensure resources are distributed effectively to where they are needed most.
According to Dr. Animoku, the Kogi State ASC is a statewide data collection initiative that will gather vital statistics from every public and private school. Key data points include learner enrollment to determine how many learners are attending school, teacher distribution to check if there are enough qualified educators, school infrastructure covering classrooms, electricity, furniture, clean water supply and sanitation, and learning resources such as textbooks and digital learning tools. She stressed that this information is crucial for policymakers, educators, and communities to make informed decisions that drive educational progress.
She explained that the Federal Ministry of Education has migrated all states to DNEMIS for uploading Annual School Census data. DNEMIS is a centralized digital register and master database that captures, stores, and manages education information across Nigeria. Every school will get a 10-digit DNEMIS ID, creating a comprehensive list of all public and private schools nationwide. The system also introduces the Learner’s Identification Number, LIN, for every learner from basic to tertiary level. The LIN is integrated with WAEC/NECO and tracks the schools learners are linked to, even when they transfer. DNEMIS will also integrate with NIMC for learners’ progress tracking and feed into the National Education Repository and Databank, NERD.
Dr. Animoku said the goals are clear: planning through real-time data for interventions, integrity by linking verified learner IDs to verified school IDs to reduce impersonation and strengthen exam security, tracking to monitor out-of-school children, dropouts, learning gaps, and student movement, and integration with national systems. To ensure smooth data upload, the Ministry of Education will conduct a two-day training for school data officers in Lokoja LGA, with other LGAs scheduled in the coming days. Every designated data officer is expected to access the DNEMIS portal and upload their school’s information. She warned that failure to upload will have negative impact on the school, learners, and the state’s overall data, leading to under-reporting.
The Ministry will also hold advocacy and sensitization meetings across the three senatorial zones. Kogi West stakeholders will meet on Friday, June 19, 2026 at St. Augustine’s College, Kabba. Kogi Central is scheduled for Monday, June 22, 2026 at Abdul Atta Memorial College, Okene, while Kogi East will hold its session on Tuesday, June 23, 2026 at Our Lady of Schools, Anyigba.
Dr. Animoku noted that an accurate census improves educational planning by identifying trends in enrollment, dropout rates, and academic performance. It ensures fair resource distribution so schools with limited infrastructure or teacher shortages receive targeted support. It monitors gender and equity in education, highlights disparities, and strengthens educational reforms by providing a factual basis for evaluating policies against national and global standards. The data will also be used to target interventions and programmes that improve access to quality education. She acknowledged challenges such as incomplete or inaccurate reporting and resistance from some private school managers who fear the data will be used for taxation, and stressed that the ASC is not for taxation but for educational planning, research, development, and policymaking. Awareness campaigns and the ongoing sensitization programme are expected to address skepticism and highlight how the census directly improves learning environments for learners and teachers.
With the DNEMIS migration and statewide training, Kogi State is positioning the 2025/2026 Annual School Census as the foundation for data-driven education reform. The Ministry is calling on all school proprietors, administrators, and data officers to participate fully when the exercise officially commences on June 24, 2026.
In his remarks, the Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Usman Ahmed Ododo, warned that pupils and students without a Learners Identification Number, LIN, will no longer benefit from Government interventions, including free education, admission into higher institutions, WAEC, NECO Mock, BECE, and scholarships. The Governor said the LIN is not a tax measure but a unique identifier for every child in the education system. He directed all schools, especially private operators, to ensure every child is captured. “Do not deny any child the opportunity to be captured. Any school that denies a child registration in the 2025/2026 Annual School Census will be penalised,” Ododo warned. He explained that the LIN will serve as the child’s identity from basic school through tertiary education. “This number is what the child will be required to use all through his academic journey to the tertiary institution,” he said. Governor Ododo urged citizens to support efforts to build a virile education system in Kogi as part of measures to curb crime and criminality.
Represented by the Commissioner for Education, Hon. Wemi Jones, the Governor disclosed that from now on, only children with LIN will access state interventions. “Any child without a Learners Identification Number will henceforth not be allowed to benefit from the state government’s free education policy and other interventions,” he said. The child will also be barred from admission into higher schools, WAEC, NECO Mock, BECE, and scholarship schemes currently enjoyed in the state. The Governor said his administration’s commitment to education underscores the ongoing school renovations, payment of WAEC fees, regular payment of teachers’ salaries, and the administration’s insistence on maintaining 30% budgetary allocation to education.
The meeting had in attendance representatives of ANCOPS, NAPS, KONGONET, AMIS, Education Secretaries, Kogi State Statistician General, SUBEB, Kogi State House of Assembly Committee on Education, and former Commissioners for Education, including Roseline Oshikoya and Sunday Olorunleke. In their goodwill messages, stakeholders described the Annual School Census as a veritable tool for education development and pledged full cooperation to ensure its success.