The Federal Government, in partnership with the World Bank, has begun the implementation of a $500m Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity–Governance Programme, aimed at strengthening financial and human resource management in basic education and primary healthcare across the country.
The National Coordinator of the HOPE-Governance Programme, Assad Hassan, confirmed the commencement on Tuesday in Abuja while briefing the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Deborah Odoh, where the programme is domiciled.
A statement issued by the programme’s Communications Officer, Joe Mutah, said the intervention was designed to address long-standing governance gaps in the education and health sectors, particularly at the sub-national level.
Nigeria has one of the highest numbers of out-of-school children globally, while primary healthcare centres across many states remain understaffed, underfunded, and poorly equipped, challenges that have been compounded by weak public financial management systems at the sub-national level.
According to Hassan, the World Bank-assisted facility is structured into two components, a Programme-for-Results and an Investment Project Financing window.
