Maitafsir Musa Garba (Hon.)

About Maitafsir Musa Garba (Hon.)

Professor Maitafsir Musa Garba is a Nigerian academic, education administrator and politician from Sokoto State. He is a professor of Educational Psychology whose career has combined university teaching and research with senior administrative positions in Nigeria's education sector. In recent years, he has also entered electoral politics and emerged as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the Yabo/Shagari Federal Constituency of Sokoto State in the 2027 House of Representatives election.

Maitafsir Musa Garba was born on 3 September 1959. He began his education at Yabo Town Primary School in Sokoto State, where he studied from 1972 to 1976, before attending Government Teachers' College, Wurno, from 1976 to 1981. His early training as a teacher established the foundation for what would become a long career in education and educational administration.

He pursued higher education at the University of Sokoto, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Education in 1987. He subsequently earned a Master's degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Lagos in 1990. He continued his academic development at Universiti Sains Malaysia, where he completed a PhD in Educational Psychology in 1999. His doctoral research examined Islamic moral values consciousness among Hausa and Yoruba adolescent students in government and Muslim schools in Lagos and Sokoto States, reflecting his long-standing interest in education, psychology and social development.

Before rising to senior positions in Nigeria's education sector, Maitafsir gained practical teaching and administrative experience. He taught at Bengaje Primary School in 1982 and later became principal of Muslim Community School, Idi-Araba, Mushin, Lagos, in 1988. He also served as a teacher with the Federal Ministry of Education at Federal Government Girls' College, Bida, Niger State, between 1988 and 1989. These early responsibilities provided him with experience at different levels of Nigeria's education system.

Maitafsir subsequently developed an academic career at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, where he specialised in Educational Psychology. The university's annual report lists him as a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology, confirming his position as a senior academic within the institution. His academic career involved teaching, research and participation in the development of education and teacher-training programmes.

His public-sector leadership expanded significantly when he served as Executive Chairman of the Sokoto State Universal Basic Education Board between 2012 and 2015. He later moved to the National Teachers' Institute (NTI), Kaduna, where he was appointed Director-General and Chief Executive effective 2 September 2021. At NTI, his responsibilities included overseeing an institution with a national mandate for teacher education and professional development.

During his tenure at NTI, Maitafsir reported a number of institutional reforms. At the end of his tenure in 2024, he stated that the institute had reduced more than 95 percent of the ₦1.2 billion debt he inherited, while also reviving its printing press and reducing the cost of externally printing examination materials. He also reported that NTI had received approval to move toward offering degrees in Education through distance learning. These claims were made by Maitafsir during his handover as Director-General and were reported by the News Agency of Nigeria.

After his tenure at NTI, Maitafsir continued to be involved in national education administration. He has been identified as Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-Formal Education (NMEC), where his work has focused on literacy, adult education and non-formal learning. In 2025, he publicly highlighted the scale of adult illiteracy in Nigeria and called for greater attention and funding for adult education, while stressing the role of literacy in economic and social inclusion.

Maitafsir's political career became more prominent ahead of the 2027 general election. He is contesting the Yabo/Shagari Federal Constituency seat in the House of Representatives under the APC. The APC's candidate directory lists him as its candidate for Yabo/Shagari, while the published final candidate record for the constituency also identifies Maitafsir Musa Garba as the APC candidate.

In September 2026, during the build-up to the election, Maitafsir became associated with constituency-oriented interventions in Yabo and Shagari. Reports stated that he commenced the rehabilitation of the Sifawa-Shagari-Yabo electricity line, which had reportedly been out of service for more than six years. He stated that he had made an advance payment of ₦150 million to the contractor handling the rehabilitation. He linked the project to restoring electricity for businesses, health facilities, schools, agricultural activities and other community services.

Overall, Maitafsir Musa Garba has built his public career primarily around education, academic administration and teacher development before moving into electoral politics. From his early work as a classroom teacher to his professorship in Educational Psychology, leadership of the Sokoto State Universal Basic Education Board, directorship of the National Teachers' Institute and role in national adult-literacy administration, his career has remained strongly connected to education. His 2027 candidacy for Yabo/Shagari represents his transition from appointed educational leadership into direct legislative politics in Sokoto State.