PLANE reaches over 2 million children as UK-funded program closes

The UK-funded Partnership for Learning for All in Nigeria (PLANE) has reached more than two million children and supported the training of more than 25,000 teachers and facilitators across northern Nigeria since its launch in 2019.

The achievements of the program were highlighted at the closing event in Kaduna on Wednesday, where education stakeholders called on state governments to sustain its achievements and ensure that more children have access to quality education after the end of the programme.

Implemented by DAI, UNICEF, Save the Children and consortium partners, PLANE supported education reforms, basic literacy and numeracy, child protection and learning opportunities for vulnerable children, including those affected by emergencies.

Speaking at the event, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Pete Vowles, said the program demonstrated the value of collaboration between governments, teachers, communities and development partners.

“As we celebrate the program’s achievements today, the more important question is what happens next,” he said.

Vowles said the UK is encouraged that the successful approaches introduced under PLANE have been adopted and scaled up by Nigerian institutions to support improvements in learning beyond the duration of the programme.

“PLANE is closing down. The UK-Nigeria education partnership is not,” he added.

In his keynote speech, Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, said state governments must take responsibility for sustaining the programme’s achievements.

“PLANE has done its part. Now it is up to us, the state governments, to maintain progress and ensure that every child in our respective states has the opportunity to go to school and learn,” he said.

The governor, represented by the deputy governor, said Kaduna had increased its basic school enrollment from 2.17 million in 2022 to over 2.57 million in 2025.

He added that recent mapping of families in the state’s 23 local government areas places the number of out-of-school children at 187,719, up from an estimate of 535,000 when he took office.

Sani said education received 25% of the state’s $985.9 billion budget for 2026, describing investments in education as essential to the state’s development, security and economic prosperity.

He also called for greater cooperation between States, saying shared challenges could be addressed more quickly through the exchange of evidence and lessons from successful interventions.

Acting Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr Folake Olatunji-David, said partnerships, reliable data and innovation are key to improving access to education and learning outcomes.

He said education stakeholders must go beyond increasing school enrollments to focus on attendance, retention, completion and basic literacy and numeracy, particularly among girls, children with disabilities, displaced students and other vulnerable groups.

Olatunji-David urged governments to embed effective interventions in education policies, institutional processes and budgets to ensure that gains made through development programs are sustained.

He also highlighted the importance of using reliable education data to identify learning gaps, guide resource allocation and evaluate the impact of interventions.

The Kaduna State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Abubakar Sani Sambo, said the program contributed to efforts to improve access to education and strengthen teaching and learning.

He said more than 25,000 out-of-school children have returned to learning in the state’s 23 local government areas, while calling for continued efforts to keep children in school.

“The seeds sown under PLANE are already bearing fruit,” said Sambo, urging stakeholders to build on the progress made.

Education commissioners from participating states, including Kano, Jigawa, Borno and Yobe, also praised the program and stressed the need for governments to support its achievements.

The Borno State Commissioner for Education, Engr. Abba Lawan Wakilbe, said the legacy of the program will depend on what governments and other stakeholders achieve after its closure.

“PLANE’s legacy will not be measured by what it did, but by what we achieve next,” he said.

The program operated through interventions focused on fundamental skills, education in emergencies and community-focused initiatives, working with government institutions and communities to improve learning opportunities for children.