86 Nigerians benefit from UNESCO REF, UNICAF scholarship awards

At least eighty-six Nigerians have benefited from a scholarship programme initiated through a strategic partnership between the Read and Earn Federation for UNESCO (UNESCO REF) and Unicaf under the Educational Financial Facility Scheme (EFFS), aimed at expanding access to globally recognised higher education.

The initiative provides beneficiaries with an 86 per cent scholarship coverage on tuition fees for undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programmes offered through internationally accredited institutions, with recipients required to pay only 14 per cent of their tuition costs.

The scheme, according to the partners, is designed to complement the Federal Government’s Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) rather than duplicate its mandate, supporting national efforts to improve human capital development under the Renewed Hope Agenda.

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Founder and Chief Executive Officer of UNICAF, Dr. Nicos Nicolaou, said the partnership aligns with the organisation’s commitment to widening access to quality and internationally recognised qualifications.

“UNICAF is pleased to enter into this strategic partnership with the Read and Earn Federation for UNESCO, an institution whose mandate aligns directly with the principles that have guided UNICAF since its founding,” Nicolaou said.

He added that through the EFFS, UNICAF would provide structured scholarship support to qualified Nigerian students while working alongside national institutions to expand opportunities for emerging professionals.

The scholarship pathway is exclusively accessed through admission via UNICAF under the UNESCO REF EFFS facility. Successful candidates are eligible for the 86 per cent tuition support, while the remaining 14 per cent is paid by the student.

President of UNESCO REF, Prince Abdulsalami Ladigbolu-Oranmiyan, described the initiative as a structured instrument for improving access to internationally accredited education.
He said the facility was established to create additional pathways for Nigerians seeking quality tertiary education while supporting the country’s education financing ecosystem.

“Through this facility, in partnership with UNICAF, qualifying candidates secure up to 86 per cent scholarship coverage on their tuition, advancing Nigeria’s commitments under the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and standing in measured complement to the Federal Government’s Nigeria Education Loan Fund,” he said.

According to him, UNESCO REF would continue to collaborate with internationally recognised partners to widen access to accredited qualifications and contribute to Nigeria’s human capital development agenda.

The partnership aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 4 Target 4.3, which promotes equal access to affordable and quality tertiary education, and SDG 8 Target 8.6, which seeks to reduce the number of young people outside education, employment, or training.

The partners said implementation of the programme would be monitored through key indicators, including enrolment figures, programme completion rates, accreditation outcomes, and post-qualification employability of beneficiaries.

One of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Grace Adetola, a registered nurse at Maitama District Hospital, Abuja, said the scholarship had helped her overcome financial barriers to advancing her professional qualification.

Adetola, who is pursuing a master’s programme in Public Health Management, said the facility had created an opportunity for her to obtain an internationally recognised qualification.

“For many years, I had held the aspiration of advancing my professional formation through an internationally accredited qualification in Public Health Management, yet the financial pathway to such a programme had remained beyond my practical reach,” she said.

She commended the scheme, urging other Nigerian professionals seeking further education opportunities to take advantage of the initiative.

The UNESCO REF-UNICAF partnership is expected to strengthen Nigeria’s knowledge economy by expanding access to quality higher education and supporting workforce development through scholarship-based financing.