Oando Foundation, has launched a five-year initiative designed to enhance foundational learning, digital literacy, and environmental education in public primary schools across the country by targeting 1 million students.

At a media engagement in Lagos, the Foundation announced its goal to impact one million children by 2027, emphasising the urgency of addressing Nigeria’s learning crisis with scalable, evidence-based solutions.

The organisation also highlighted its strategic shift toward prioritising foundational literacy and numeracy, STEAM education, green skills development, and education advocacy critical focus areas aimed at bridging learning gaps and improving learning outcomes, especially in the wake of COVID-19 learning losses and the alarming statistics on learning poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa.

According to a 2024 The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) report, 773 million adults worldwide lack basic literacy skills, two-thirds of whom are women and 250 million children failing to acquire basic literacy skills.

Of all regions, sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rates of education exclusion. Over one-fifth of children between the ages of 6 and 11 are out of school, followed by one-third of children between the ages of 12 and 14.

This gap in literacy not only perpetuates cycles of poverty but also hinders the region’s ability to unlock the full potential of its population, limiting both individual and societal growth.

Speaking on the Foundation’s renewed strategy, Tonia Uduimoh who is the Head of Oando Foundation, stated: “Education is the bedrock of national development, yet millions of Nigerian children remain on the margins, denied access to quality learning.

“We are at a critical juncture now more than ever, we must rethink how we deliver education. LEARNOVATE is designed to provide structured and impactful solutions to these challenges.