Foundation convenes stakeholders to address critical gaps in girl child education financing
By Nicholas Kalu BudgIT Foundation, through its Education Champion Network (ECN), a coalition of education advocates supported by the Malala Fund, has convened a high-level stakeholders’ engagement on Girl Child
By Nicholas Kalu
BudgIT Foundation, through its Education Champion Network (ECN), a coalition of education advocates supported by the Malala Fund, has convened a high-level stakeholders' engagement on Girl Child Education Financing in Oyo State.
Held on March 24, 2026 in Ibadan, the engagement brought together government officials, civil society representatives, faith-based organizations, and legislative representatives to examine the state's education financing landscape and chart a path toward gender-responsive budgeting.
Communications Officer at Tracka, Ademide Ademola, opened the engagement by outlining BudgIT's objectives for the project and the critical roles each stakeholder plays in its implementation.
The event aimed to present research findings, gather expert insights, and develop advocacy positions around girl child education financing with a particular focus on identifying funding gaps and evaluating current education expenditure trends in Oyo State.
Research and Policy Analyst at BudgIT Foundation, Ibukunolu James, presented a critical analysis of Oyo State's policy and institutional stance on girl-child education.
Her findings revealed a stark reality: Oyo State's 2025 education capital budget contains no earmarked funding whatsoever for girl-child education.
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She pointed out that neither the education sector budget nor the allocations to the Ministry of Women Affairs include distinct budget lines addressing the specific needs of girls.
She said the absence of gender-disaggregated data further complicates the determination of whether any existing funds directly benefit female students.
"The persistent funding gap for girls' education in Oyo State has produced a cascade of structural deficits.
"Without targeted financing, schools lack the physical infrastructure to support inclusive learning environments, enrollment opportunities remain constrained, and girls face heightened risks of dropping out, particularly at the transition from primary to secondary education.
"The lack of gender-sensitive water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure further undermines attendance and retention, especially for adolescent girls," James said.
The dialogue session that followed surfaced urgent concerns from participants across sectors.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Mrs. Toyin Oyinloye, acknowledged the role of School-Based Management Committees (SBMCs) and affirmed that while collaboration between schools and communities exists, significant improvements are needed.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) representative raised pointed concerns about potential diversion of education funds, calling for robust accountability mechanisms to detect and prevent fiscal misappropriation. Meanwhile, the Oyo State House of Assembly representative, Olumuyiwa O., drew attention to the burden of long-distance travel on female students, highlighting how the physical and social costs of commuting suppress enrollment and deepen dropout rates.
Participants also flagged the absence of gender-responsive budget lines and the lack of monitoring mechanisms as critical barriers, noting that even where nominal allocations exist for girls, there are no systems to confirm whether resources actually reach intended beneficiaries.
The engagement concluded with a set of concrete policy recommendations for the Oyo State Government.
They include the conduct of a comprehensive gap analysis of existing girl child education interventions and financing, with findings used to establish evidence-based priorities for resource allocation; creating structured platforms for meaningful citizen participation, especially for women and youth groups, in budget formulation and review processes and establishing specific budget line items within the education capital budget that directly address girls' needs, with gender-disaggregated fund tracking to enable monitoring of resource flows and impact.
They also called for leveraging SBMCs to orient parents as active accountability agents, investing in training, sensitization, and community-school-government partnerships to strengthen oversight and reduce hidden education costs.
They said girl child education financing is not merely a social imperative but a strategic investment with profound implications for economic development and the long-term sustainability of the society.
"Oyo State must take deliberate, measurable steps to ensure that girls are not left behind in the state's education financing architecture," James emphasized.
The engagement marks a significant step in BudgIT Foundation's ongoing advocacy for transparent, gender-responsive public financing in Nigeria's education sector.
