UBEC disburses N44.24 billion to Kaduna, Ondo, and nine additional states

A total of N44.24bn has been disbursed by the Universal Basic Education Commission as matching grants to 11 states, with the aim of supporting them in providing necessary infrastructure for Universal Basic Education implementation.

n

The beneficiary states, as listed on the UBEC website, include Jigawa, Ondo, Taraba, Kogi, Kaduna, Plateau, Osun, Zamfara, Bauchi, Sokoto, and Enugu, all of which are required to provide counterpart contributions to access the grants.

n

The matching grant is a conditional one, with each state's total share computed based on the amount received by UBEC, and the state is required to contribute at least 50 per cent of the total cost of any given project as its own counterpart fund.

n

Funds disbursed between January and March this year cover the first to fourth quarters of 2025, except for Kaduna, which received funds from the third quarter of 2024 through the fourth quarter of 2025, and Taraba, which received funds for both 2024 and 2025.

n

Zamfara received funds for the first to third quarters and part of the fourth quarter of 2025, while other states received funds for the specified quarters of 2025.

n

The disbursement amounts vary by state, with Jigawa, Ondo, Kogi, Plateau, Osun, Bauchi, Sokoto, and Enugu each receiving N3.55bn, and Taraba receiving N7.10bn.

n

Kaduna and Zamfara received N5.33bn and N3.557bn, respectively, as part of the matching grant disbursement.

n

To access the matching grant allocation, every state and the FCT is required to provide an equal amount as counterpart fund contribution, in compliance with Section 11(2) of the Universal Basic Education Commission Act, 2004.

n

The timeline for a state that has accessed but does not utilise the fund is a maximum of one year, after which the commission shall recall its matching funds, as stipulated by the UBEC guidelines.

n

UBEC has consistently expressed concern that funds disbursed to state governments are often retained and unutilised in the coffers of the 36 State Universal Basic Education Boards and the Federal Capital Territory.

n

Last year, the Executive Secretary of the commission, Aisha Garba, lamented that N250bn intervention funds remained unutilised by states, highlighting the need for effective utilisation of the disbursed funds.