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By Amina Joseph
The Federal Government has begun the rollout of a major basic education intervention that will reach an estimated 29 million Nigerian children, with the Universal Basic Education Commission, UBEC, warning that states must back it up with real funding or risk losing out.
The programme, known as Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity in Education (HOPE-EDU), is backed by a $552.18 million facility from the World Bank. Beyond the children, it is also designed to support 500,000 teachers, 65,000 public primary and junior secondary schools, 10,000 non-formal learning centres and deliver 13,000 new classrooms across the country.
At the heart of the project is a simple but difficult question - will state governments put their money where the policy is?
Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday at a two-day implementation readiness meeting with Chairmen of State Universal Basic Education Boards, SUBEBs, the Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr Aisha Garba, said the time for budget talks is now.
According to her, HOPE-EDU became effective on February 27, 2026 and has already entered implementation. What will determine whether a state benefits, however, is whether it makes adequate provision for the programme in its 2027 budget.
“A lot of the deliverables for Year 1 will require provisions in the states’ 2027 budget,” Garba said.
She directed the SUBEB chairmen to return to their states, brief their governors and ensure that the required financial commitments are captured early, warning that several disbursement-linked indicators are tied directly to state funding.
HOPE-EDU is not a conventional grant. It runs on a results-based financing model, meaning states only get paid when they hit agreed targets and those targets are independently verified.
The funding breakdown shows where the priorities lie. A total of $262.239 million is set aside for improving quality, $123.9 million for expanding access to education, and $133.611 million for strengthening systems and accountability.
Garba explained that the quality component will focus on raising teaching standards, supplying learning materials and improving how much pupils actually learn. A major tool for this will be the Structured Pedagogy Programme (SPP), which is meant to change how literacy and numeracy are taught in primary schools.
She noted that the programme will build on existing UBE interventions and align with other ongoing reforms in governance and primary healthcare.
On participation, the UBEC boss clarified that not every component is for every state.
The first result area on quality is open to 33 states, with the possibility of extending to all 36 states and the FCT if they are part of HOPE-GOV operations. The second component on access is more targeted, limited to 15 states with the highest number of out-of-school children and which meet other eligibility criteria. The third, which deals with system strengthening, is open to all states and the FCT.
What this means is that each state has to understand which component it qualifies for and what it needs to do to stay eligible.
Garba stressed that implementation will not be driven by Abuja alone. It will require strong coordination between state ministries of education, SUBEBs, Local Education Authorities, schools and School-Based Management Committees.
She described SUBEB chairmen as the key drivers of basic education at the state level and urged them to take ownership of HOPE-EDU.
She said the initiative, under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, is aimed at giving every Nigerian child, especially those in rural areas, marginalised communities and out-of-school populations, a fair chance at quality learning.
But she was blunt that good intentions alone will not deliver classrooms, teachers and learning outcomes.
“The success of HOPE-EDU rests on your shoulders. Let us work together to ensure that no state is left behind,” she told the chairmen.
Garba also asked them to use the meeting to ask questions, get clarity on verification requirements and go back as advocates for the programme in their states.
She commended the National Programme Coordinator, the Programme Manager and the HOPE-EDU team for organizing the session, as well as the Federal Ministry of Education, the World Bank and other partners for their support.
Earlier, the Programme Manager, Mr Olumayowa Aleshin, gave an overview of the funding structure, targets and timelines, reiterating that disbursements will only happen after results are achieved and verified.
On paper, HOPE-EDU is one of the biggest basic education interventions in recent years. With 29 million children and half a million teachers in its scope, its promise is huge. Whether that promise turns into better classrooms, better teaching and more children in school will depend on how quickly states move from meetings to budget lines and from budget lines to action.
