The non-formal system consists of functional literary, remedial, continuing, vocational aesthetic, cultural, political and environmental education for youth and adults outside the formal school system. The non-formal system allows for exit from and re-entry into it at desired points or times in life. There is also provision for movement from non-formal to the formal system.

Deliberate efforts have been made towards community empowerment through primary education intervention. Community programmes are run by community rural market, daily urban market centres, community and women co-operative society and by some mosques and churches. A home and community based informal low cost and participation initiative is also being employed in the provision of non-formal education at the pre-primary level.

There are currently three main levels of teachers training establishments as follows:
Teacher Training Colleges: These used to be part of the secondary education programme. They awarded the Teachers Certificate Grade which in the past was the qualification required for primary school teaching across the country. However, the National Policy on Education has made the Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE) the minimum Qualification for teaching in the country. Therefore, the Grade II colleges are now being phased out.

Colleges of Eduction: These Colleges run post secondary training programmes which produce NCE teachers. They used to train teachers for junior secondary teaching but they now train for primary teaching as well in view of the fact the NCE which they award has become the minimum qualification for primary school teaching as from 1998. Some of the colleges also run NCE pre-primary courses in order to produce teachers for the pre-primary level of education.

Universities: All conventional universities in Nigeria run the Bachelor of Education Degree Programmes which, are open to holders of the senior school certificate and the NCE. Senior Secondary School teachers are trained in the universities