The National Universities Commission on Wednesday signed additional $65 million performance contracts with vice-chancellors of participating universities under the World Bank-backed Sustainable Procurement, Environmental and Social Standards Enhancement Project.
The agreement is aimed at strengthening procurement, environmental and social governance standards across Nigerian universities.
The signing ceremony, held in Abuja, brought together officials of the NUC, the Bureau of Public Procurement, the World Bank, participating universities and other stakeholders.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Secretary of the NUC, Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, described the additional financing phase as a major step toward deepening sustainability and governance reforms in the university system.
“This phase marks not only a continuation of the initiative, but also a renewed opportunity to consolidate achievements, scale impacts and deepen sustainability measures across participating institutions,” Ribadu said.
He explained that the SPESSE project was created to address the shortage of skilled professionals in procurement, environmental and social safeguards, as well as the limited number of specialised academic programmes in those areas within Nigerian universities.
According to him, six centres of excellence were established across the country’s geopolitical zones under the coordination of the NUC with support from the World Bank.
Ribadu said the centres, including those at Ahmadu Bello University and Lagos State University, were producing skilled manpower to support transparency, environmental responsibility and inclusive development.
The NUC boss disclosed that the project had recorded major milestones since its launch in 2021, including the development of postgraduate diplomas, master’s degree programmes and undergraduate courses.
He added that investments in digital learning infrastructure, high-performance computing systems and virtual learning facilities had strengthened teaching, research and learning across participating institutions.
Ribadu also revealed that some centres had begun enrolling foreign students, while over 68 international partnerships had been established under the programme.
He noted that certification protocols for procurement, environmental and social standards had been developed by relevant government agencies to authenticate practitioners in the sector.
The NUC Executive Secretary further disclosed that three of the six centres had commenced PhD programmes, while the remaining centres were expected to begin in the next academic session starting in July 2026.
According to him, the new financing phase is expected to produce at least 60 PhD graduates, enroll no fewer than 60 foreign students and facilitate student exchange programmes with international institutions.
Ribadu said The Gambia had already expressed interest in sending students to the centres.
He explained that the new phase of funding would focus more on sustainability, environmental management and procurement systems, including electronic procurement.
“The government intends to have all procurements in the future done electronically, and this funding framework will support that transition,” he stated.
Task Team Leader of the SPESSE Project, Ishtiak Siddique, described the initiative as one of the World Bank’s most important partnerships with Nigeria.
According to him, the additional financing package of $65 million builds on the original $80 million SPESSE project launched in 2021.
Siddique revealed that more than 40,000 people had already been trained under the programme, while another 24,000 people are expected to benefit during the additional financing phase.
He added that the project would also support the implementation of a full electronic procurement system at the federal level before extending it to states.
The system, he noted, would utilise emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve efficiency and transparency in public procurement.
Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, Adebowale Adedokun, said the agency remained committed to producing procurement officers who are academically and professionally competent.
He disclosed that over 2,700 officers had already been trained and certified under the programme across federal, state and local government institutions.
Vice Chancellor of Lagos State University, Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, said the project had strengthened institutional systems and improved learning infrastructure within the university.
She noted that the initiative had helped universities intentionally train professionals in procurement, environmental and social governance standards.
Similarly, the Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Prof. Adamu Ahmed, said the programme had increased student enrollment and expanded virtual learning opportunities.
He added that the initiative had also attracted international students to the university.
The SPESSE project was launched in 2021 with an initial $80 million World Bank facility aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s capacity in procurement, environmental and social governance through specialised university training programmes.
Margaret ABAH
