EduFinance School Leadership Academy: Connecting 600 Nigerian School Leaders to Financing Opportunities

As Nigeria continues to experience rapid population growth, the role of education in shaping the nation’s future becomes increasingly critical. With over 40% of Nigeria’s 200 million people under the age of 15, the country’s school system is under immense pressure to deliver quality education. Over 8 million children are receiving education in non-state schools, which comprise an estimated 18% of Nigeria’s overall school system and are commonly run by sole proprietors offering affordable education options. Both state-run and non-state schools are pivotal in addressing the educational needs of Nigeria’s young population, laying the foundation for the country's socio-economic development.

And yet, without access to financing options, the potential for affordable non-state schools to build new classrooms and add new seats for students is limited.

Recognizing this, Opportunity EduFinance has steadily expanded its partnerships with financial institutions and schools across Nigeria. Central to this initiative is EduFinance’s School Leadership Academy (SLA), a series of workshops designed to bridge the gap between school leaders and financial institutions. The workshops provide a platform where school leaders—many of whom have limited or no experience with formal financial services—can engage directly with financial institutions to learn about borrowing processes to access tailored school improvement loan products, and ultimately secure the funding necessary for school investment and development.

To gain deeper insights from EduFinance’s SLA workshops held across Nigeria, we spoke with Rotimi Ilesanmi, Robinah Zawedde, and Hanna Leykun from our Technical Assistance team.

The Role of the School Leadership Academy Workshops

The School Leadership Academy was conceived with a clear mission: to support school leaders who have likely never taken a loan but are interested in learning about the borrowing process. Many school owners in Nigeria have never considered applying for a loan, often due to a lack of information about the availability and accessibility of such financial products.

The workshops also cater to schools that have previously been misinformed about loan requirements or have had unsuccessful loan applications. Through the training sessions, these schools receive guidance on how to meet the necessary criteria and avoid rejection in future applications.

In addition to training on key school financial management topics, the workshops offer leaders the opportunity to interact directly with financial institutions, ask pressing questions, and break down the barriers that have prevented them from securing loans in the past. Through panel discussions and interactive sessions, partner financial institutions can market direct to school leaders, while leaders gain a deeper understanding of the loan application process, the specific financial products available, and the terms and conditions associated with them. This exchange of knowledge is designed to mobilize interested schools towards accessing finance, thereby enhancing their capacity to improve infrastructure, invest in resources, and drive positive educational outcomes.

The School Leadership Academy's Outreach Across Nigeria

In 2024, EduFinance’s School Leadership Academy expanded its reach across Nigeria, covering 12 cities in total. The workshop ‘tour’ was divided into two phases, with the first covering Abeokuta in Ogun State, Ibadan in Oyo State, Ilorin in Kwara State, and Abuja. This phase saw a strong collaboration with Private School Associations, which played a crucial role in mobilizing participants.

The second phase of the SLA tour extended to 8 additional cities: Jos in Plateau State, Kano in Kano State, Port Harcourt in Rivers State, Owerri in Imo State, Benin in Edo State, Osogbo in Osun State, Enugu in Enugu State, and Lagos. This phase was particularly notable due to a strategic partnership with Sterling Bank, which reached out to Opportunity EduFinance to include several key cities in which they were prepared to support the workshops — Kano, Port Harcourt, Benin, Enugu, and Lagos. This partnership helped further ensure that more school leaders across Nigeria could benefit from the training opportunity.

Njideka Nwabueze, the Group Head of Education Finance at Sterling Bank, remarked on working with Opportunity EduFinance:

The SLA program has provided valuable opportunities for school leaders to connect with their colleagues, share best practices, and build a strong support network for the long-term growth of their schools. It was truly an inspiring and insightful program. The positive feedback and accolades from school leaders have been overwhelming and very encouraging.

While some participants of the program are already building solid relationships with the bank, this is a powerful testament to the magic that a focused and strategic partnership and collaboration can create. Opportunity International’s expertise, resources, commitment, and dedication to education and leadership development for school owners and leaders are truly inspiring. We are fortunate to have them as a partner because, together, we have created a program that will have a lasting impact on the lives of all participants and the wider school educators' community at large.”

High Demand Workshops: Mobilizing School Leaders

The workshops across Nigeria achieved remarkable success in terms of aligning with school leader interests, highlighted by a series of well attended sessions in key cities. The workshops commenced in Jos, where participants gave high scores in satisfaction surveys and requested additional local sessions. The momentum continued in Kano with nearly 100 school leaders attending Sterling Bank’s exclusive training, setting a benchmark for engagement and enthusiasm, followed by Benin, with an equally impressive turnout with about 70 school leaders. In Lagos, the tour culminated in a large workshop with 80 school leaders and included prominent figures like Dr. Yomi Otubela, the President of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS).

The success of these workshops was largely due to the proactive mobilization of school leaders through Private School Associations, including the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS) and other regional associations. These organizations played a pivotal role in rallying attendees, ensuring that a diverse group of school leaders from various locations were able to participate.

CAPTION: SLA Workshop interactive activity in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Survey Data Analysis: Key Insights from School Leaders

CAPTION: Several SLA Workshop attendees in Kano, Nigeria

The surveys conducted during the workshops provided valuable insights into the profiles and needs of the participating schools.

• One of the most striking findings was that 310 schools were low-fee institutions serving students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. There is a critical need for accessible and affordable financial solutions to support these schools in growing and delivering quality education.
• When asked if they were considering applying for a school improvement loan in the next 6 months prior to attending the workshop, only 60% confirmed this was their plan. When asked the same question after attending the workshop, 84% reported they were now considering applying for a loan in the next 6 months, showing an increase of 24 percentage points in leaders motivated by the training to consider financing.
• When asked how they would choose to use a loan, if approved, 56% of school leaders reported they would use it for constructing new classrooms, 34% intended to purchase land for their schools, 27% would use it to buy school desks and classroom furniture, and 26% of school leaders would use it to buy computers.
• After the training, leaders were asked in the survey to share what challenges they perceived facing if applying for a loan. Most responded that the biggest challenge would be meeting collateral requirements (41%), lack of knowledge surrounding loan products and the financing process (32%), followed by insufficient cash flow to repay loans (20%).
• The surveys also indicated a strong interest among participants in forming new banking relationships. In particular, several school leaders expressed interest in exploring financial products offered by institutions like Sterling Bank, which was involved in several SLA sessions.

Based on this feedback and insights, the team better understands how the SLA workshops helped stimulate proactive steps toward securing funding for school development, while also recognizing opportunities for further training to continue building owners’ knowledge and confidence in the loan application process.

The Future of the School Leadership Academy in Nigeria

As Opportunity EduFinance continues to expand its partnerships with financial institutions and schools, the lessons learned from the School Leadership Academy workshops will play a crucial role in shaping future initiatives. The commitment to empowering educators and strengthening the ties between financial institutions and the education sector across Nigeria remains unwavering. The journey undertaken in 2024 is just the beginning of a broader effort to uplift the standard of education in Nigeria by helping unlock the potential of affordable non-state schools, working towards ensuring that every child has access to quality education and the opportunity to succeed.

Learn more about our partnership with Pursue and the SLA workshops we conducted in Western Kenya here!