The Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) Project in Bauchi State is set to train 156 technical service providers on environmental and social safeguards to strengthen the implementation of its activities across the state.
The State Project Coordinator, Hajiya Ladi Mohammed Hamma, disclosed this during a media briefing on the progress of the project. She explained that the technical service providers include civil engineers, architects, quantity surveyors and environmental experts who will serve as professional guides for building and renovation works under the project.
Hamma said the project had been awaiting approval from the World Bank before conducting the training. “We have now received clearance, and the training will commence next Thursday,” she said.
She also gave updates on the construction of new schools across the 20 local government areas of the state. According to her, all necessary processes have been completed, and the project is awaiting approval of prototype designs and site specifications from the World Bank. She noted that approval is expected before the end of the month, after which advertisement, tendering and bidding processes will begin.
The coordinator further stated that AGILE plans to renovate 1,203 secondary schools across Bauchi State. She explained that the renovation has been delayed pending the training of technical service providers, which is a requirement before fieldwork can start.
Hamma revealed that 12,133 beneficiaries in 100 schools are already benefiting from the project’s conditional cash transfer scheme. Each beneficiary has received N40,000 directly credited to their bank accounts. She said a few beneficiaries are yet to receive their ATM cards, adding that distribution is ongoing through FCMB’s Jos branch. “All beneficiaries will receive their ATM cards before the end of the week,” she assured.
According to her, each girl will receive N60,000 under the scheme. She explained that N15,000 is for registration and N25,000 is for transition support in the first term, making N40,000 already disbursed. Beneficiaries who maintain at least 70 per cent attendance will receive N10,000 per term until they complete junior or senior secondary school.
Hamma said AGILE is expanding from 100 to 200 schools and aims to enrol 40,000 beneficiaries in the second cohort. She appealed to parents to ensure their wards obtain a National Identification Number (NIN) and birth certificates, as well as parents’ NIN and BVN, to enable account processing. She clarified that application forms are given directly to beneficiaries and urged parents to use the funds strictly for educational purposes, reaffirming AGILE’s commitment to improving access to quality education for adolescent girls in Bauchi State.
