NUC Secures $65m World Bank Support for University Training

FELICIA ONAH, Abuja

The National Universities Commission (NUC) has secured an additional $65 million support facility from the World Bank to strengthen specialised training programmes in Nigerian universities and expand professional capacity development across key sectors.

The fresh funding, secured under the Sustainable Procurement, Environmental and Social Standards Enhancement Project (SPESSE), is expected to support the training of at least 24,000 additional Nigerians in procurement, environmental management and social governance.

The agreement was signed on Wednesday at the NUC headquarters in Abuja in the presence of representatives of participating universities, the World Bank and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP).

The SPESSE initiative was launched in 2021 with an initial $80 million World Bank facility aimed at addressing shortages of skilled professionals in procurement, environmental safeguards and social standards within the country.

Speaking during the signing ceremony, Executive Secretary of the NUC, Abdullahi Ribadu, said the additional financing would consolidate achievements already recorded under the first phase of the project while deepening sustainability measures across participating institutions.

According to him, the programme was designed to address critical manpower gaps in sectors linked to governance, procurement and environmental management.

“The project was conceived to address a critical gap in the Nigerian university system,” Ribadu said.

“Insufficient supply of skilled professionals in procurement, environmental and social safeguards, as well as the limited availability of specialised academic programmes in these fields.”

He explained that six centres of excellence were established across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones under the supervision of the NUC and with support from the World Bank.

The centres, located in institutions including Ahmadu Bello University and Lagos State University, currently run short professional courses, postgraduate diplomas, master’s degrees and undergraduate programmes in specialised fields tied to procurement and environmental governance.

Ribadu said the institutions had recorded notable progress since the launch of the project in 2021.

According to him, investments in digital learning platforms, high-performance computing systems, live-streaming facilities and learning management infrastructure had strengthened teaching, research and professional training across the centres.

He also disclosed that some of the institutions had started attracting foreign students while over 68 international partnerships had been established under the initiative.

The NUC boss further revealed that certification protocols covering procurement, environmental and social standards had been developed in collaboration with relevant government agencies to strengthen professionalism and improve quality assurance.

He said three of the six centres had already commenced PhD programmes, while the remaining centres are expected to begin doctoral studies during the next academic session starting in July 2026.

“Across the project, we expect to see the production of at least 60 PhDs, the enrolment of no fewer than 60 foreign students, the facilitation of at least 18 staff internships, and the provision of no less than 60 student exchange programmes with foreign institutions,” Ribadu stated.

He disclosed that The Gambia had already indicated interest in sending students to the participating centres.

According to him, the new phase of funding would focus more on sustainability, environmental governance and the implementation of electronic procurement systems across public institutions.

“The government intends to have all procurements in the future done electronically,” he said.

Task Team Leader of the SPESSE project at the World Bank, Ishtiak Siddique, described the initiative as one of the institution’s most strategic interventions in Nigeria.

He noted that although the World Bank currently manages a portfolio worth about $17 billion in Nigeria, the SPESSE project occupies a unique position because of its broad impact across several sectors.

“This particular project is very close to our heart because it actually cuts across all the sectors,” Siddique said.

He revealed that over 40,000 people had already been trained under the first phase of the project.

According to him, the additional financing is expected to significantly expand capacity development efforts within government institutions and related sectors.

“We are aiming even higher — at least an additional 24,000 people will be trained under the additional financing,” he said.

Siddique also disclosed that the procurement component of the project would support the deployment of an end-to-end electronic procurement system at the federal level before eventual expansion to states.

He explained that the system would utilise emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve transparency and efficiency in public procurement.

Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, Adebowale Adedokun, said more than 2,700 officers from federal, state and local government institutions had already been trained and certified under the programme.

He added that the new phase would also support online capacity-building programmes for small and medium-scale enterprises as well as policymakers handling public funds.

Stakeholders at the event described the initiative as a major boost for university education, governance reform and manpower development in Nigeria.