Nigeria, Italy lead $5bn global education financing campaign

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Nigeria and Italy have strengthened collaboration on a campaign to mobilise $5bn for education financing worldwide through the Global Partnership for Education.

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The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday.

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According to the statement, the collaboration was highlighted at the “Multiply Possibility: A New Era for Education Financing” high-level event held in New York, United States, on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

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The statement said President Bola Tinubu, in a video message to the event, noted that the GPE vision aligned with his administration’s agenda of improving educational outcomes by investing in access and capacity building for teachers.

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The President also commended stakeholders in the GPE for their efforts towards accelerating education financing globally. Representing the President at the gathering, Vice President Kashim Shettima said education was an investment in Nigeria’s economic future, productivity, prosperity and stability.

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He said, “For Nigeria, education is not an expenditure at the margins of our development agenda. It is an investment in our economic future, national productivity, and the prosperity and stability of our people.

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“Since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office in 2023, our Administration has substantially increased resources devoted to education, while pursuing reforms to strengthen basic education financing, expand foundational learning, and improve access to tertiary and technical education.

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“Through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, we are widening access to higher education, while strengthening the link between education, skills, employment and enterprise.”

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Shettima said Nigeria was looking beyond traditional budgetary allocations, noting that Tinubu had directed that liquid funds recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, once legally cleared and free from litigation, be channelled to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.

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The VP said the Federal Executive Council had also recently approved the consideration of unclaimed dividends and dormant funds for the same purpose, subject to relevant legal requirements.

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He said this demonstrated Nigeria’s commitment to mobilising every responsible and lawful domestic source to finance education.

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Citing Nigeria’s partnership with the World Bank and GPE through HOPE-EDU, Shettima said, “The programme is expected to reach approximately 29 million children and 500,000 teachers across Nigeria.”

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He added: “This is precisely why GPE matters. GPE does not replace national investment; it multiplies it. The ambition before us is to mobilise US$5 billion for GPE and, through that investment, unlock additional financing for education in partner countries.

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“Domestic resources must remain the anchor, complemented by development assistance, concessional finance, philanthropy and innovative financing.”

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The Vice President said Nigeria’s growing population could become one of its greatest economic assets if its “young people have access to quality education, relevant skills and meaningful opportunities.”

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He said the response to declining global aid “must therefore be smarter multilateralism: using scarce international resources to leverage much larger investments.”

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Shettima urged participants to ensure that the initiative was not merely a fundraising exercise but “a renewed compact for human capital, bringing together national leadership, international partnership and responsible financing so that every child has the opportunity to learn, thrive and contribute to their country’s future.”

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He also expressed Nigeria’s appreciation to the Italian government and GPE for joining the campaign, stressing that Nigeria was participating not merely to seek greater international investment but “to demonstrate that we are investing in education ourselves.”

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Earlier, Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, praised Tinubu’s leadership and Nigeria’s determination to improve educational outcomes across all levels.

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She urged partners in the global alliance to show greater commitment to reversing the trend in developing countries.

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The UN Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, thanked partners for their interest in improving education financing in developing countries.

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She called on international financial institutions to support committed countries in finding the fiscal space needed to improve educational outcomes, including capacity building for teachers.

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Also speaking, the Chair of the Board of Directors of GPE, Jakaya Kikwete, underscored the need to accelerate education financing, noting that education remained central to human rights, security and peace.

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Girls’ education activist, Malala Yousafzai, also called for greater collaboration in ideas and resources, urging governments and multilateral organisations to commit more resources towards gender equality in education.

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The statement said governments and donors at the event made contributions towards the education of at least 370 million children globally, while the Italian government pledged €50m for GPE programmes and interventions.

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