The Minister of Education Tunji Alausa on Tuesday disclosed that Nigeria has finalized discussions to secure a $100 million grant through the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) aimed at supporting the funding of the nation’s foundational education.
NewsQuest reports that Nigeria continues to fund foundational education through a combination of government budget allocations, international financing programmes, and partnerships with organizations, aiming to improve education quality, and access.
Minister Alausa spoke to journalists in New York while reviewing issues about his Ministry’s participation in sideline high-level meetings of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
The Education Minister said one of such programmes that just got finished was a better service delivery for Nigerian children, an intervention which saw Nigeria receive $500 million package as a World Bank loan, with the GPE contributing a $54 million grant for foundational education improvements.
Minister Alausa noted that President Bola Tinubu is committed to hosting the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) replenishment conference on Wednesday together with the Prime Minister of Italy, on the sidelines of UNGA, where the grant opportunity will be discussed.
He explained that Vice President Kashim Shettima will be representing President Tinubu together with the Deputy Prime Minister of Italy, Mr. Mattia Sivani at the event at the United Nations Headquarters, New York.
The GPE replenishment conference is a major event where world leaders, donors, and partners commit financial resources to transform education in low-income countries.
“Vice President Kashim Shettima will be representing President Tinubu, together with Deputy Prime Minister of Italy, Mr. Matteo Salvini at this event at the United Nations Headquarters tomorrow.
“This is big for us, but Nigeria is pushing to support GPE, because GPE has supported us, and as we raise this money, some of those grants will come to us as well,” Alausa noted.
He continued that “GPE has been good to us, they have provided several supports for us in the area of our foundational education.
“One programme that just got finished was a better service delivery for better education service delivery for Nigerian children.
“They gave us about $500 million grant, and they have committed to us with this new replenishment management conference that they will give us about $100 million grant, with a multiplier effect of over $500 million to support our foundational education,” the Minister said.
According to him, “This is a symbiotic relationship with us. We have supported them, they have supported us, and we are there for them at their time of need.
“President Tinubu has given us the support. He made a video to support this replenishment conference for them. He also approved the Op-ed that they were going to publish in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.
“So, the Vice President will be going to this event tomorrow, because this is the global partner for the education board, who is here by former Tanzanian president- President Mwai Kikwete, who has been very proactive and supportive of foundational education all across Africa.”
Speaking on Nigeria’s new curriculum that has become a matter of controversy, Minister Alausa said, most Nigerians seem excited about the development.
He continued “We have really restructured this curriculum to be competence-based and outcome-based, where we can now begin to give our children the right kind of education, a modern kind of education that they need.
“We are right-sizing the education. We are taking the voluminous part of this curriculum, which they need to study. That which is not useful, we have stripped out from the new curriculum.
“It’s more focused, it’s more competence-based and more outcome-based, where we can now begin to give Nigerian children the right kind of education, modern level of education, that they need.”
The Minister added that “More importantly, we have streamlined it to the things that they need. You see, we have provided two big initiatives to the new curriculum. Nigerian history is back.
“This, I believe, would really help in rebuilding national, patriotism and nationalism in our citizens. We have seen younger generations now, the millennials, or Gen Z, or whatever you call them. They are so detached from Nigerian history- the content of what Nigeria is.
“We have a good country. Our country is good, but this younger generation is so detached. And one major reason for that is that in the last 16 to 20 years, Nigerian history has not been taught in our schools. But now it’s back.
“This was championed by the President who mandated that we have to restore Nigerian history.
“I personally reviewed the curriculum. What I learned in school – the Borno Empire, the Mali Empire, the Elkanami Empire, all those things, Oyo kingdom, Ibadan kingdom, Benin kingdom – those things are now back.
“We are now learning our history, both Igbo history, Yoruba history, Hausa history, Fulani history, and even the religious history. How Islam got to Nigeria, how Christianity got to Nigeria.
“This is going to really help to rebuild and rebirth our national identity. We have also added digital technologies. We have infused Artificial Intelligence (AI) robotics and coding into education. We are now training our children for the next century so that they can continue to compete.
“Our Education System is good. We also have to keep abreast of what is happening all around the world, so, we can continue to train Nigerians to be globally competitive. And that’s what we are doing.
“We have done a lot of restructuring, transformative changes. Nigerian education sector. We have seen a lot of early results.
“As we do this, we are doing this a part of sustainability. We are putting sustainability into it so that 10 to 20 years from now, our education system gets stronger and remains stronger,” Minister Alausa stressed.
