Nigeria, Italy Deepen Partnership to Mobilise $5bn for Global Education

Nigeria and Italy have stepped up collaboration on a global campaign seeking to mobilise $5 billion to strengthen education financing in developing countries and expand access to quality learning. The initiative, being championed under the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), was a major focus of a high-level event in New York on Wednesday, where world leaders and education stakeholders discussed new approaches to financing education amid declining development assistance. President Bola Tinubu said the GPE’s vision was closely aligned with his administration’s education agenda, particularly its focus on improving learning outcomes through greater access to education and investment in teacher capacity. The President spoke in a video message at the Multiply Possibility High-Level Event, themed “A New Era for Education Financing,” held on the margins of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly. According to a statement issued by Vice President Kashim Shettima’s media aide, Stanley Nkwocha, Tinubu commended stakeholders involved in the GPE campaign for their efforts to accelerate education financing globally. Shettima represented the President at the event, where he described education as a strategic investment in Nigeria’s economic development rather than an expenditure on the margins of government priorities. “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,” Shettima said. The Vice President said the Federal Government had increased resources allocated to education since Tinubu assumed office in 2023, while pursuing reforms aimed at strengthening basic education financing, improving foundational learning and expanding access to tertiary and technical education. “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,” he said. Shettima also highlighted the role of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund in expanding access to higher education and strengthening the relationship between education, skills development, employment and entrepreneurship. “Through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, we are widening access to higher education, while strengthening the link between education, skills, employment and enterprise,” he said. Nigeria seeks additional funding sources The Vice President said Nigeria was also exploring sources of funding beyond conventional government budgetary allocations. He disclosed that President Tinubu had directed that funds recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, after being legally cleared and free from litigation, should be channelled towards the Nigerian Education Loan Fund. Shettima added that the Federal Executive Council had recently approved consideration of unclaimed dividends and dormant funds for the same purpose, subject to applicable legal requirements. According to him, the measures reflect the government's position that improving education financing requires the mobilisation of every responsible and lawful domestic source available. He also pointed to Nigeria’s collaboration with the World Bank and GPE through the HOPE-EDU programme as an example of what international partnerships could achieve. “The programme is expected to reach approximately 29 million children and 500,000 teachers across Nigeria,” Shettima said. He stressed that international assistance should complement, rather than replace, domestic investment in education. “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,” he said. “Domestic resources must remain the anchor, complemented by development assistance, concessional finance, philanthropy and innovative financing,” he added. ‘Smarter multilateralism’ needed Shettima said Nigeria’s large and youthful population could become one of the country’s greatest economic assets if young people were equipped with quality education, relevant skills and meaningful opportunities. He argued that the decline in global development assistance required countries and international institutions to find more effective ways of deploying limited resources. “The answer to declining global aid must therefore be smarter multilateralism: using scarce international resources to leverage much larger investments,” he said. The Vice President urged participants to ensure that the GPE campaign went beyond fundraising and became a broader commitment to developing human capital. He called for greater collaboration among national governments, international partners and responsible financiers to ensure children have the opportunity to learn, develop and contribute to their countries’ future. Shettima also expressed Nigeria’s appreciation to Italy and the GPE for their partnership in the campaign, stressing that Nigeria’s participation was not simply an appeal for international funding. He said the country also wanted to demonstrate its own commitment to investing in education. Italy pledges €50m Earlier, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in a video presentation, praised Tinubu’s leadership and Nigeria’s efforts to improve education outcomes across different levels. She called for stronger commitment from members of the global education alliance to reverse declining education support in developing countries. UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed also called for stronger international action to improve education financing. Mohammed said the desired changes should begin with decisions made by national governments, while urging international financial institutions to help countries create the fiscal space required to improve education outcomes. She particularly highlighted the importance of teacher training and capacity building, noting that the motivation and preparation of teachers remain crucial to improving learning outcomes. The Chair of the GPE Board of Directors, Akaya Kikwete, similarly stressed the need to accelerate education financing. He said education remained central to the advancement of human rights, security and peace, adding that the GPE campaign was responding to declining development assistance and the widening education financing gap. Malala calls for greater focus on girls Nobel laureate and girls’ education activist Malala Yousafzai urged governments and international organisations to strengthen collaboration in mobilising resources for education. She said global partnerships could deliver greater and more lasting results than isolated interventions by individual countries. Yousafzai also called for increased investment in gender equality in education and greater attention to the specific challenges facing girls, particularly in developing countries. Governments and donors participating in the high-level event subsequently announced contributions towards education initiatives expected to benefit at least 370 million children globally. Italy pledged €50 million to support GPE programmes and interventions, adding momentum to the campaign to mobilise $5 billion for global education financing.