From the Universal Primary Education (UPE) to Universal Basic Education (UBE): Implications for counseling in primary and junior secondary schools in Nigeria

The Universal Basic Education (UBE) was introduced by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) in 1999 to reduce the level of illiteracy, accelerate national development and improve the fallen standard of education as against the crises that besieged the implementation of the erstwhile Universal Primary Education (UPE) scheme that was launched in 1976. The UBE was a major strategy of the government to achieve Education for All (EFA) by the year 2015 as part of the global Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). This study therefore, highlights the problems that hampered the successful implementation of the UPE and the need for a proper implementation of the UBE. To realize the objectives of the UBE and the dividends of EFA by the year 2015, it was suggested that guidance services are sine qua non and that government must show more commitment towards this end.   Key words: Universal Primary Education, Universal Basic Education, counseling, Nigeria.