FG, World Bank unveil $150m Education Investment Project
Federal Government with the support of the World Bank has unveiled a $150 million project aimed at improving education quality for millions of school children in Nigeria.
Speaking at the official launch of the State Education Programme Investment Project (SEPIP) Friday in Abuja, the Supervising Minister of Education, Barr. Nyesom Wike said that the project would specifically support need-based teacher deployment, school-based management, accountability and measurement of students learning in Anambra, Bauchi and Ekiti state.
State Education Programme Investment (SEPIP) will work with the Federal Government and support education programs of participating states of Anambra, Bauchi and Ekiti and improve their education, which will lead to more equitable access and efficiency in their respective educational sector.
According to him: 'This official launch will help in creating awareness for the commencement of the project implementation, while the project when successfully implemented, will contribute towards the achievement of the national education goals, the transformation agenda of the present administration, the vision 20: 2020, as well as the strategic plan for development of the educational sector.
Wike noted that the Ministry of Education is already taking a bold step to tackle the challenges of Nigerian Educational system by developing a 4-year strategic plan for the development of the education sector.
In his remarks earlier, the World Bank Acting Country Director, Dr. Sateh El-Arnaoji, said that the project would contribute to Nigeria's long-term objective of human capital development for sustaining economic growth and poverty reduction.
'The SEPIP objective is well aligned with the government's Transformation agenda towards the achievement of its vision 20:2020.
He noted that the $150 million Nigeria State Education Programme Investment Project (SEPIP), links financing to results achieved through better deployment and school management adding the it would also improve measurement of student learning in government primary and secondary schools in the state.
Also speaking, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Dr. Macjohn Nwaobiala, stated that the launch was timely as it is already creating awareness of the project implementation and its immense benefit towards improving the quality of education and promoting more equitable access and efficiency in the selected states.
He therefore urged the benefitting states to channel required amount of resources that will ensure adequate implementation of the project.