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UNICEF GEP3 `ll bring additional 1m girls to school by 2020

Published

6 years ago

August 27, 2019

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) says the Girls Education Project in six participating states will bring an additional one million girls to school by 2020.

Mr Richard Akanet, Kano State UNICEF Coordinator of the project, made the disclosure on Tuesday at a two-Day Media Dialogue on School Based Management Committee (SBMC) in Kano.

The project, funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), is expected to span through eight years from 2012 to 2020, aimed at contributing to improving the social and economic opportunity for girls.

Akanet, presenting the overview on the GEP3 project in the participating states- Bauchi, Zamfara, Kastina, Niger, Sokoto and Kano, said the project had integrated Quranic education into the formal education.

He said that the SBMC was a national strategy which was employed to get school age girls to school without neglecting the boys’ enrollment.

Akanet said that the SBMC had been able to incorporate a huge number of Quranic schools into the formal education.

He said each school has one SBMC which focus on the need of the school improvement, planning as well as improving enrollment and reducing out of school children.

According to him, target of the project is to ensure more girls in the targeted states in Northern Nigeria complete basic education, while also acquiring skills for life and livelihood.

“GEP3 has achieved a lot, especially in building the capacity of SBMCs and this allows them to prioritise the needs of their schools.

“With advocacy, we are now able to convince the Quranic schools to integrate their schools into the formal education and Quranic schools have now been integrated into the formal education.

“The work that takes place in Quranic schools under the GEP 3 is for the schools to be controlled by the state mechanism.

“We have also inculcated the core subjects to match the Islamic education. The out-of-school children have now been integrated,” he said.

Akanet also explained that the GEP 3 SBMC initiative had created 1,539 female teachers in Kano State to ease learning outcome.

He also said that by 2020, 1.6 million girls would be reached by improved teaching and girls-friendly learning environment.

The UNICEF coordinator said that by the target year, 42,000 primary and Quranic school teachers would have also been trained and mentored in child centre pedagogy.

He added that the expected result of the initiative was to ensure that 15,300 head teachers would have been trained in school effectiveness, efficiency and curriculum management.

“The programme is not focussing on girls alone, but also to make sure that by 2020, an approximate 1.9 million boys will also benefit from the GEP 3 investment through improvement to teachers quality and school governance,” Akanet said.

Also, Mr Muntaka Muktar, UNICEF Education Specialist in Kano, said that the Integrated Quranic Schools had been introduced in the state to afford children the opportunities to have formal education.

Muktar said the Quranic schools afforded children to learn within their environment, while the core subjects had been integrated into the schools.

“The integration of core subjects like Mathematics, English and others into the Quranic schools will enable children to have the opportunity to read.

“After learning from the Quranic schools, they can now mainstream it to any public school close to them,” he said. (NAN)

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NELFUND: The Renewed Hope Engine Propelling Nigeria’s Youth into Tomorrow

Published

3 days ago

November 28, 2025

The Gleamer

By Dayo Israel, National Youth Leader, APC

As the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress, I have spent most of my tenure fighting for a Nigeria where every young person, regardless of their ward or local government, family income, or circumstance, can chase dreams without the chains of financial despair.

Today, that fight feels like victory, thanks to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). Launched as a cornerstone of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, this initiative isn’t just a policy tweak; it’s a revolution. And under the steady, visionary hand of Managing Director Akintunde Sawyerr, NELFUND has transformed from a bold promise into a roaring engine of opportunity, disbursing over ₦116 billion to more than 396,000 students and shattering barriers for over a million applicants.

Let’s be clear: NELFUND was always destined to be a game-changer. Signed into law by President Tinubu on April 3, 2024, it repealed the outdated 2023 Student Loan Act, replacing it with a modern, inclusive framework that covers tuition, upkeep allowances, and even vocational training—ensuring no Nigerian youth is left on the sidelines of progress.

But what elevates it from groundbreaking to generational? Leadership. Enter Akintunde Sawyerr, the diplomat-turned-executioner whose career reads like a blueprint for results-driven governance. From co-founding the Agricultural Fresh Produce Growers and Exporters Association of Nigeria (AFGEAN) in 2012—backed by icons like former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Dr. Akinwumi Adesina—to steering global logistics at DHL across 21 countries, Sawyerr brings a rare alchemy: strategic foresight fused with unyielding accountability.

As NELFUND’s pioneer MD, he’s turned a fledgling fund into a finely tuned machine, processing over 1 million applications since May 2024 and disbursing ₦116 billion—₦61.33 billion in institutional fees and ₦46.35 billion in upkeep—to students in 231 tertiary institutions nationwide. That’s not bureaucracy; that’s brilliance.

Sawyerr’s touch is everywhere in NELFUND’s ascent. Since the portal’s launch, he’s overseen a digital ecosystem that’s as transparent as it is efficient—seamless verification, BVN-linked tracking, and real-time dashboards that have quashed misinformation and built trust. In just 18 months, the fund has empowered 396,252 students with interest-free loans, many first-generation learners who might otherwise have dropped out.

Sensitization drives in places like Ekiti and Ogun have spiked applications — 12,000 in a single day in one instance, while expansions to vocational centers in Enugu pilot the next wave of skills-based funding. And amid challenges like data mismatches and fee hikes, Sawyerr’s team has iterated relentlessly: aligning disbursements with academic calendars, resuming backlogged upkeep payments for over 3,600 students, and even probing institutional compliance to safeguard every kobo. This isn’t management; it’s mastery—a man who doesn’t just lead but launches futures.

Yet, none of this happens in a vacuum. President Tinubu’s alliance with trailblazers like Sawyerr is the secret sauce securing Nigeria’s tomorrow. The President’s Renewed Hope Agenda isn’t rhetoric; it’s resources—₦100 billion seed capital channeled into a system that prioritizes equity over elitism. Together, they’ve forged a partnership where vision meets velocity: Tinubu’s bold repeal of barriers meets Sawyerr’s boots-on-the-ground execution, turning abstract policy into tangible triumphs. It’s a synergy that’s non-discriminatory by design—Christians, Muslims, every tribe and tongue united in access—fostering national cohesion through classrooms, not courtrooms.

As Sawyerr himself notes, this is “visionary leadership” in action, where the President’s political will ignites reforms that ripple across generations.

Why does this matter to us, Nigeria’s youth? Because NELFUND isn’t handing out handouts—it’s handing out horizons. In a country where 53% of us grapple with unemployment, these loans aren’t just funds; they’re fuel for innovation, entrepreneurship, and endurance.

Picture it: A first-generation polytechnic student in Maiduguri, once sidelined by fees, now graduates debt-free (repayments start two years post-NYSC, employer-deducted for ease) and launches a tech startup. Or a vocational trainee in Enugu, equipped with skills funding, revolutionizing local agriculture. This is quality education that endures—not fleeting certificates, but lifelong launchpads. Sawyerr’s focus on human-centered design ensures loans cover not just books, but bread—upkeep stipends of ₦20,000 monthly keeping hunger at bay so minds can soar. Under his watch, NELFUND has debunked doubts, refuted fraud claims, and delivered results that scream sustainability: Over ₦99.5 billion to 510,000 students by September, with 228 institutions on board.

As youth leaders, we see NELFUND for what it is: A covenant with our future. President Tinubu and MD Sawyerr aren’t just allies; they’re architects of an educated, empowered Nigeria—one where poverty’s grip loosens with every approved application, and innovation blooms from every funded desk. This isn’t charity; it’s an investment in the 70 million of us who will lead tomorrow.

We’ve crossed one million applications not because of luck, but leadership—a duo that’s turning “access denied” into “future unlocked.”

To President Tinubu: Thank you for daring to dream big and backing it with action.

To Akintunde Sawyerr: You’re the executor we needed, proving that one steady hand can steady a nation.

And to every Nigerian youth: Apply. Graduate. Conquer.

Because with NELFUND, your generation isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving, enduring, and eternal.

The Renewed Hope isn’t a slogan; it’s our story, now written in scholarships and success. Let’s keep turning the page.

Dayo Israel is the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

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