Economy
World Leaders Call for Urgent Action on Global Learning Crisis
By Omoh Gabriel
At one of the several schedule meetings of the 2013 IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings, an unprecedented gathering of heads of global development agencies and ministers from eight developing countries that account for nearly half the world’s 61 million out-of-school children, leaders called for urgent action to remove the barriers to achieving the Millennium Development Goal (MDG2) of universal primary education by 2015 and to close the gap between rich and poor in learning access and outcomes.
They disclosed that an estimated 250 million children worldwide are unable to read and write. One in five have young people ages 15 to 24 have not completed primary school and lack the basic skills necessary for life and work.
The eight developing countries participating in the Learning for All Ministerial are Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Haiti, India, Nigeria, South Sudan, and Yemen.
Addressing the gathering World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim said “We must have greater ambition in educating children around the world. We need to get all children into school but we need more than that – we need to make sure they are learning . “Countries need a workforce with the skills and competencies necessary to create jobs, fuel innovation, and drive inclusive economic growth. Addressing this global learning crisis is essential to ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity.”
The meeting is part of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Global Education First Initiative, which gathers a broad spectrum of world leaders and advocates who aspire to use the transformative power of education to build a better future for all.
Also addressing the group UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said “We are here to identify concrete actions to ensure that all children and young people have access to school and quality learning by the year 2015, “We are here for the hundreds of millions who do not have the right opportunities to learn. There is no more valuable investment than education. It takes bold financial decisions – but they are bound to pay off, for individuals, society and our world. We must prove that we can pool our resources and muster our will in the sure knowledge that educating children now will pay dividends to whole societies for generations to come.”
New data on access and learning gaps
New analysesof these eight countries’ education challenges, prepared for the ministerial meetings in a series of reports to the UN Special Envoy for Global Education and coordinated by the Center for Universal Education at Brookings, show that even countries at very different stages of development face a set of common barriers to education access and quality. The greatest gaps are among children from marginalized socio-economic groups, particularly girls, in fragile and conflict-affected states, in slums and remote communities, from ethnic minorities and lower castes, and children with disabilities.
Giving these children a quality education will require targeted and innovative efforts to mitigate the leading causes of disadvantage. Special efforts to promote girls’ education, such as providing conditional cash transfers and other financial incentives, have proven highly effective in increasing the number of girls in school.
“Inequality in education has become the civil rights issue of our generation. With less than 1,000 days to go before the deadline to achieve education for all, pioneering action is needed to make sure that every child goes to school. It is not acceptable that every day 61 million children don’t receive an education because they’re born into poverty, made to go to work instead or forced into child marriage,” said the Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education.
.“Today’s meetings should precipitate a clear course of action to put countries back on track to schooling their young, placing the needs of the most marginalized at the heart of the global education agenda. Working together – the UN, the World Bank, the Global Partnership for Education, civil society and the governments of countries with large out-of-school numbers – we can take bold strides to help children around the world achieve their potential.”
The analyses also point to alarmingly low or even declining levels of learning as access to education has expanded in recent years. At the meeting, the World Bank also unveiled the first 20 country diagnostic reports produced through the World Bank’s new Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER) initiative. The SABER data and analytic tools will help countries put effective policies and systems in place to measure student performance and address other barriers to learning, such as teacher policies, and enable them to benchmark their progress against other countries.
A number of leaders at the meeting noted that the MDGs do not focus on the quality of education and learning, and this should be a priority for the post-2015 development agenda. The UN Secretary-General’s High-level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda will deliver its report on May 30.
Accountability was also highlighted by leaders as a key constraint. Accountability must be strengthened at all levels, for example ensuring that teachers get paid creating mechanisms of social accountability through parents’ associations, and ensuring that education budget information is publicly accessible at the community level. Leaders also stressed the importance of additional funding to scale up successful learning initiatives, especially in domestic budgets as well as in more and better coordinated external support delivered at the country level, including through the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), and the United Nations agencies.
“With the support of the international community, we launched a far reaching program aimed at guaranteeing access to free basic education for all Haitian children,” said Laurent Lamothe, Prime Minister of Haiti. “In post-earthquake Haiti we faced not only the collapse of school infrastructure and over 500,000 children with no access to education, we also had an acute shortage of qualified teachers. Our program has now provided school access to 1.3 million children, constructed 800 new schools and recruited and trained 8,500 school teachers.”
“Investing in education helps realise every child’s potential – so strengthening education is the single best investment we can make in long-term poverty reduction, especially for girls.” said Peter Baxter, Director General of the Australian Agency for International Development. “Education is a top priority for Australia’s aid program, and we will provide $880 million in funding for education this year.”
Since 2000, the Bank has invested $29 billion in education, including more than $15 billion from IDA. New commitments for education totaled $3 billion in FY12, with $2.25 billion for basic education. In 2010, the Bank pledged an additional $750 million in IDA financing for basic education over five years to help the poorest countries reach the education MDGs. As of April 1, 2013, the Bank had provided $882 million in additional financing against the pledge, exceeding its commitment a full two years ahead of schedule.
The Arab Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program and the Federal Republic of Nigeria formalized a partnership with the signing of the AATB Membership Agreement, officially welcoming Nigeria as the Program’s newest member country. The signing ceremony took place in Abuja on the sidelines of the 5th AATB Board of Governors Meeting, hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Membership Agreement was signed by Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, the CEO of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and AATB Program Secretary General, and H.E. Mr. Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Agreement will provide a strategic and operational framework to support Nigeria’s efforts in trade competitiveness, promote export diversification, strengthen priority value chains, and advance capacity-building efforts in line with national development priorities. Areas of collaboration will include trade promotion, agribusiness modernization, SME development, businessmen missions, trade facilitation, logistics efficiency, and digital trade readiness.
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, called for deeper trade collaboration between African and Arab nations, stressing the importance of value-added Agribusiness and industrial partnerships for regional growth. Speaking in Abuja at the Agribusiness Matchmaking Forum ahead of the AATB Board of Governors Meeting, the Minister said the shifting global economy makes it essential for African and Arab nations to rely more on regional cooperation, investment and shared markets.
He highlighted projections showing Arab-Africa trade could grow by more than US$37 billion in the next three years and urged partners to prioritize value addition rather than raw commodity exports. He noted that Nigeria’s growing industrial base and upcoming National Single Window reforms will support efficiency, investment and private-sector expansion.
“This is a moment to turn opportunity into action”, he said. “By working together, we can build stronger value chains, create jobs and support prosperity across our regions”, Edun emphasized. “As African and Arab nations embark on this journey of deeper trade collaboration, the potential for growth and development is vast. With a shared vision and commitment to value-added partnerships, we can unlock new opportunities, drive economic growth, and create a brighter future for our people.”
Speaking during the event, Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, Chief Executive Officer of ITFC and Secretary General of the AATB Program, stated: “We are pleased to welcome Nigeria to be part of the AATB Program. Nigeria stands as one of Africa’s most dynamic and resilient economies in Africa, with a rapidly expanding private sector and strong potential across agribusiness, energy, manufacturing, and digital industries. Through this Membership Agreement, we look forward to collaborating closely with Nigerian institutions to strengthen value chains, expand regional market access, enhance trade finance and investment opportunities, and support the country’s development priorities.”
The signing of this Agreement underscores AATB’s continued engagement with African countries and its evolving portfolio of programs supporting trade and investment. In recent years, AATB has worked on initiatives across agribusiness, textiles, logistics, digital trade, export readiness under the AfCFTA framework, and other regional initiatives such as the Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) Programme.
With Nigeria’s accession, the AATB Program extends it’s presence in the region and adds a key partner working toward advancing trade-led development and fostering inclusive economic growth.
Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), a key fiscal document that outlines Nigeria’s revenue expectations, macroeconomic assumptions, and spending priorities for the next three years. The approval followed Wednesday’s FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu made this known after the meeting.
The Minister said the Federal Government is projecting a total revenue inflow of N34.33 trillion in 2026, including N4.98 trillion expected from government-owned enterprises. Bagudu said that the projected revenue is N6.55 trillion lower than earlier estimates, adding that federal allocations are expected to drop by about N9.4 trillion, representing a 16% decline compared to the 2025 budget.
He said that statutory transfers are expected to amount to about N3 trillion within the same fiscal year. On macroeconomic assumptions, FEC adopted an oil production benchmark of 2.6 million barrels per day (mbpd) for 2026, although a more conservative 1.8 mbpd will be used for budgeting purposes. An oil price benchmark of $64 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,512 per dollar were also approved.
Bagudu said the exchange rate assumption reflects projections tied to economic and political developments ahead of the 2027 general elections. He said the exchange rate assumption took into account the fiscal outlook ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The minister said that all the parameters were based on macroeconomic analysis by the Budget Office and other relevant agencies. Bagudu said FEC also reviewed comments from cabinet members before approving the Medium-Term Fiscal Expenditure Ceiling (MFTEC), which sets expenditure limits. Earlier, the Senate approved the external borrowing plan of $21.5 billion presented by President Tinubu for consideration The loans, according to the Senate, were part of the MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2025 budget.
The spot rate on Nigerian Treasury bills has been increased by 146 basis points by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) following tight subscription levels at the main auction on Wednesday. The spot rate on Treasury bills with one-year maturity has now surpassed Nigeria’s 16.05% inflation by 145 basis points following a recent decision to keep the policy rate at 27%.
The Apex Bank came to the primary market with N700 billion Treasury bills offer size across standard tenors, including 91-day, 182-day and 364 day maturities. Details from the auction results showed that demand settled slightly above the total offers as investors began to seek higher returns on naira assets despite disinflation.
Total subscription came in at about N775 billion versus N700 billion offers floated at the main auction. The results showed rising appetite for duration as investors parked about 90% of their bids on Nigerian Treasury bills with 364 days maturity. The CBN opened N100 billion worth of 91 days bills for subscription, but the offer received underwhelming bids totalling N44.17 billion.
The CBN allotted N42.80 billion for the short-term instrument at the spot rate of 15.30%, the same as the previous auction. Total demand for 182 days Nigerian Treasury bills settled at N33.38 billion as against N150 billion that the authority pushed out for subscription. The CBN raised N30.36 billion from 182 days bills allotted to investors at the spot rate of 15.50%, the same as the previous auction.
Investors staked N697.29 billion on N450 billion in 364-day Treasury bills that was offered for subscription. The CBN raised N636.46 billion from the longest tenor at the spot rate of 17.50%, up from 16.04% at the previous auction.
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