FG Begins Handover of 117-Year-Old King’s College Lagos to Old Students

By Adedapo Adesanya

The federal government has concluded arrangements to hand over the management of King’s College, Lagos, to the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA), with funding from the Federation Account expected to cease after a six-month transition period.

The Federal Ministry of Education disclosed this in a circular dated September 3, 2026, directing the management of the 117-year-old institution to commence arrangements for the handover.

The circular, titled Concession of King’s College, Lagos to King’s College Old Boys’ Association, was signed by the Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Mr O.F. Olatunji-David, and addressed to the school’s principal.

The ministry said all necessary processes, including the signing of the concession agreement, had been concluded, adding that a Transition Committee would be constituted to oversee the transfer of management to KCOBA.

“The Transition Committee is to ensure a seamless transition of the college management to KCOBA within six months, after which funding of the college from the Federation Account will be stopped,” the ministry stated.

It also directed the principal to activate the necessary arrangements for the transition and provide the committee with a list of staff who wished to remain in the employment of the Federal Civil Service Commission.

The directive comes amid opposition from parents and staff of the college, who have raised concerns over the proposed concession, particularly its implications for the institution’s management, funding and the status of its personnel.

Parents of students staged a protest in Lagos about three weeks ago against the planned transfer of management to KCOBA and called on the federal government to halt the process.

They also threatened to prevent their children from resuming for the new academic session scheduled to begin on September 14 unless their concerns were addressed.

The development also comes as stakeholders await the outcome of interventions by the Senate and House of Representatives committees on Basic and Secondary Education over the concession.

The latest directive, however, indicates that the Federal Government has proceeded with the implementation of the concession, with the six-month transition period expected to facilitate the transfer of administrative responsibilities and determine the status of personnel.

King’s College, founded in Lagos in 1909, is one of Nigeria’s oldest secondary schools and has operated as a federal government institution for more than a century.