A Non-Governmental Organisation, Education Cannot Wait, ECW, dedicated to education in emergencies and protracted crises has announced a planned US$15m allocation to renew the ECW Multi-Year Resilience Programme in the North-East of Nigeria.
The programme specifically focuses on addressing educational needs for children and adolescents in the Northeast region where the insurgency has disrupted the education of nearly 2 million school-age children.
The Executive Director of ECW, Yasmine Sherif, and representatives from the governments of Germany and Norway during a visit to Maiduguri the capital of Borno state said the funding is subject to ECW’s Executive Committee approval.
“This investment, in collaboration with the Government of Nigeria and implementing partners, aims to support the region’s youth and contribute to fostering stability, prosperity, and peace in the area and beyond,” said Sherif.
Special Envoy for Education in Crisis and Conflict for Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Co-Chair of the ECW Executive Committee, Merete Lundemo also said Education is a lifeline for children living in areas affected by armed conflict as such Norway welcomes the strengthened cooperation with Education Cannot Wait to reach the most vulnerable with education in North-East Nigeria.
“This is part of Norway’s wider engagement for children living in armed conflict. It has been great to see how these education projects bring much-needed relief and normalcy to children in this area,” said Merete Lundemo.
Another Co-Chair of the ECW Executive Committee and Head of the Education Division at Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Dr. Heike Kuhn said building resilient education systems for increased access to inclusive, quality and lifelong learning is crucial for Nigeria.
“As half of its population are children and youth. Educating children means changing their lives, letting them participate in building peaceful sustainable societies,” he said
The delegation met with senior government officials, including the Minister of Education, Hon. Dr. Tahir Mamman, and Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, and aid partners.
During their visit to the affected communities, the delegation witnessed first-hand the positive outcomes of ECW’s initial multi-year resilience program (2021–2024), which was implemented jointly by the Norwegian Refugee Council, Save the Children, and UNICEF.
The forthcoming catalytic grant funding for the planned Multi-Year Resilience Programme will further build upon ECW’s previous investments totaling US$23.6 million in the Northeast since 2018, benefiting over 400,000 children.
Dominica Nwabufo
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