• Benue SUBEB outlines readiness, cites N150m monthly school grants
From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has said its $552.18 million World Bank-supported basic education programme will target 29 million children and support the construction of 13,000 classrooms nationwide.
The Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity for Quality Basic Education (HOPE-EDU) programme, co-financed by the World Bank and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), will also target 500,000 teachers, 65,000 public schools and 10,000 non-formal learning centres to improve learning outcomes and expand access, particularly in underserved communities.
At a two-day implementation readiness meeting convened by UBEC for executive chairmen of State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs) in Abuja, Benue State highlighted its N150 million monthly school grant scheme as part of efforts to prepare for the programme.
Presenting the state’s progress, Executive Chairman of Benue SUBEB, Dr Grace Adagba, said the scheme, instituted by Governor Hyacinth Iormem Alia, provides N50,000 monthly to headteachers and principals to support essential school operations.
She said the grants, alongside investments in infrastructure and learning materials, had improved learning environments and positioned Benue favourably for HOPE-EDU implementation.
Adagba added that the state’s ongoing basic education reforms provided a solid foundation for expanding equitable access to quality education and improving learning outcomes.
The meeting focused on state onboarding, stakeholder engagement and sensitisation, as well as operational preparedness for effective programme delivery.
Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr Aisha Garba, warned that funding under HOPE-EDU would depend on participating states meeting agreed performance targets.
She urged state governments to provide the political support, funding and institutional commitment required for implementation, stressing that several first-year deliverables would depend on allocations in their 2027 budgets.
“A lot of the deliverables for Year 1 will require provisions in the states’ 2027 budget,” she said.
Garba said the programme became effective on February 27, 2026, and had entered its implementation phase.
“It will adopt a results-based financing model under which funds are disbursed based on the achievement of agreed targets and performance indicators,” she explained.
She said HOPE-EDU was designed to improve learning outcomes, increase equitable access to basic education and strengthen governance and accountability in the sector through collaboration between UBEC and SUBEBs.
“It builds on the Universal Basic Education programme and complements other government interventions aimed at improving governance and human capital development,” she added.
According to Garba, the programme has three major result areas: improving the quality of basic education, expanding access and strengthening key systems.
She said $262.239 million had been allocated to improving education quality, $123.9 million to expanding access and $133.611 million to strengthening key systems.
The education quality component is open to 33 states, with the possibility of extending participation to all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, subject to participation in HOPE-GOV operations.
The access component targets 15 states with the highest populations of out-of-school children that also meet other eligibility requirements, while the systems component is open to all 36 states and the FCT.
Garba said the programme would emphasise better teaching, essential learning resources and improved pupil achievement, including the adoption of the Structured Pedagogy Programme to strengthen literacy and numeracy teaching in primary schools.
She stressed that meeting the targets would require effective coordination among state ministries of education, SUBEBs, Local Education Authorities, schools and School-Based Management Committees.
The UBEC boss urged SUBEB chairmen to promptly brief their governors and other relevant authorities on the programme’s requirements to secure policy direction, budgetary support and institutional commitment.
Earlier, HOPE-EDU Programme Manager, Mr Olumayowa Aleshin, outlined the initiative’s funding structure, implementation targets and key milestones.
He said participating states must meet specified performance targets and verification requirements before qualifying for corresponding disbursements.
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