Dangote unveils ₦1trn Scholarship Scheme for 1.3 million Nigerian Students
Chairman of the Aliko Dangote Foundation (ADF) and the President
of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has announced a ₦1trn scholarship programme to
expand access to education and promote academic excellence across Nigeria.
Starting in 2026, the initiative will support over 1.3 million
students from all 774 local government areas, with ₦100 billion committed
annually for 10 years.
The programme targets Nigeria’s most vulnerable learners and is
structured into three categories: Aliko Dangote STEM Scholars – 30,000
undergraduates in public universities and polytechnics will receive tuition
support of up to ₦600,000 per year; Aliko Dangote Technical Scholars –
5,000 TVET trainees will get essential study materials and technical tools; MHF
Dangote Secondary School Girls Scholars – 10,000 girls in public schools will
receive uniforms, books, and learning supplies, prioritizing states with high
out-of-school rates.
To be Implemented in partnership with NELFUND, JAMB, NIMC, NUC,
NBTE, WAEC, and NECO, the scheme will use a merit-based, fully digital system
for selection and disbursement. Dangote emphasized that this is a strategic
investment in human capital, aimed at reducing inequality and driving national
development.
The initiative aligns with government education reforms and will
be overseen by a Programme Steering Committee chaired by Emir of Lafia, Justice
Sidi Dauda Bage. Dangote pledged 25% of his wealth to sustain the programme,
with progress reviewed under Dangote Group’s Vision 2030 strategy.
The programmes is to be implemented through strong collaboration
with national institutions including NELFUND, JAMB, NIMC, NUC, NBTE, WAEC, and
NECO, ensuring transparent beneficiary selection, verification, and efficient
digital disbursement. Heads of all the agencies were present at the
launch.
Dangote said the intervention is aimed at Nigeria’s most
vulnerable learners, noting that financial hardship, not lack of talent, is the
primary reason many drop out of school.
“This is not only charity. This is a strategic investment in
Nigeria’s future. Every child we keep in school strengthens our economy. Every
student we support reduces inequality. Every scholar we empower becomes a
future contributor to national development,” he said.
“Our young people are not asking for handouts. They are asking
for opportunities. They are asking for a chance to learn, to grow, to compete
and to succeed. And we believe they deserve that chance.”
Dangote, who said the ADF which has historically focused on health
and nutrition as core areas of human capital development emphasised that the
current economic climate has made educational support an urgent
imperative.
“No young person should have their future cut short because of
financial hardship. We are stepping forward to ensure students stay in school
and pursue their ambitions. This initiative is more than financial aid—it is an
investment in human capital, with ripple effects on economies, societies, and
future generations. When a student gets a scholarship, entire communities stand
to benefit.”
He described education as “the foundation on which every
prosperous society is built”, calling it the most powerful equaliser and the
strongest engine of social mobility. Despite this, he warned that many talented
Nigerian students continue to face financial pressures that threaten to push
them out of school. Their dreams, he said, are limited not by ability but by
opportunity.
“We cannot allow financial hardship to silence the dreams of our
young people — not when the future of our nation depends on their skills,
resilience and leadership,” Dangote said.
Noting that this concern informed the Foundation’s new Education
Support Initiative, Dangote stressed that the effort is intended as a starting
point rather than a standalone solution.
“A single organisation cannot solve Nigeria’s education
challenges alone. Government has a role. The private sector has a role.
Communities and families have a role. When we work together, we can transform
education — and with it, transform Nigeria’s future,” he said.
Addressing young Nigerians directly, Dangote said: “your dreams
matter. Your education matters. Your future matters. We believe in you. We are
investing in you. And we are committed to ensuring that you do not walk this
journey alone.”
The Foundation, he said, will use a merit-based and fully
digital system for verification, disbursement and monitoring, working in
partnership with NELFUND, JAMB, NIMC, NUC, NBTE, WAEC and NECO. Dangote said
the focus will be on measurable outcomes including retention, completion rates
and post-school impact. He noted that the vision behind the initiative is to
give every deserving child the chance to learn — unfettered by cost, free to
dream, and equipped to achieve.
To oversee implementation, a Programme Steering Committee has
been constituted, chaired by His Highness Justice Sidi Dauda Bage, Emir of
Lafia. Other members include former vice-chancellors, senior education
administrators, technical advisors and representatives of the Dangote family.
Dangote also disclosed that the programme’s long-term
sustainability is tied to his formal commitment to allocate 25 per cent of his
wealth to the Aliko Dangote Foundation, adding that the progress on the
initiative will be reviewed in 2030 as part of Dangote Group’s Vision 2030
strategy.
He commended President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the
education sector, alongside the Federal Ministry of Education, SUBEBs and state
governments, for “deliberate and steady efforts” to support learners amid economic
pressures.
Vice President Kashim Shettima who lauded Dangote for his vision
in business and national development said the new intervention demonstrates the
critical role of private-sector actors in national development. He noted that
Nigeria’s demographic growth makes urgent investment in education
indispensable, warning that “a population becomes a liability only when it is
uneducated.”
“Aliko Dangote, through his far-reaching philanthropy, has set
in motion the single largest private-sector education support intervention in
the history of this country.”
“What he has done here today is a lesson to each of us. This is
nation-building in its purest form,” Shettima said.
Shettima highlighted ongoing reforms under President Bola
Tinubu’s administration, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND),
strengthened basic education infrastructure through UBEC, expanded TETFUND
interventions and accelerated technical and vocational programmes.
He said these reforms aim to improve Nigeria’s poor Human Capital
Index ranking and prepare young people for a skills-driven global economy.
Describing Dangote’s philanthropy as “structural and long term,” Shettima said
the initiative aligns strongly with the government’s priority of expanding
equitable access to education.
“No nation surpasses the aspirations of its most committed
patriots. The legacy of Aliko Dangote reminds us that greatness is not measured
by wealth but by the number of lives one lifts from the shadows into the
light,” Shettima said.
The Vice President added that the Aliko Dangote Foundation
programme will widen opportunities for thousands of learners and bolster the
FG’s efforts to build a competitive workforce. He called for stronger
collaboration between government, the private sector and development partners
to address persistent gaps in the education system.
In his presentation, Education Minister, Tunji Alausa described
the initiative as “pure human capital development,” saying it aligns with the
Tinubu administration’s education sector renewal plan of transforming Nigeria
from resource-based economy to a knowledge-based economy and is significant
because every local government area will benefit.
He said by the end of the first decade of the execution of the
scholarship programme, it is estimated that over 170,000 girl child would have
gone to school.
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, speaking on behalf of
the 36 state governors, also commended the initiative and pledged the
governors’ full support.
Chairman of the Programme Steering Committee, His Highness
Justice Sidi Dauda Bage, Emir of Lafia, said the scheme is unprecedented and
praised Dangote’s patriotism in reinvesting his wealth to uplift other
Nigerians.
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, said
Dangote’s impact in driving private-sector transformation remains unmatched,
describing the new initiative as both transformational and a strategic
investment in Nigeria’s future.
He recalled how ADF has come to the aid of his community during
a devastating communal feud that led to destruction of several property.
In her virtual remark from United States of America, United
Nation deputy secretary General, Amina Mohammed said the scholarship scheme
will provide environment for children to learn and for family to prosper.
The scholarship programme represents the most extensive
private-sector scholarship commitment in Nigeria’s history and reinforces ADF’s
mission to expand opportunities, drive social impact, and enhance the wellbeing
of individuals and communities across the country.
Credit Dangote Group PR
