The Federal Government has tied financial incentives under the World Bank–supported Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity–Governance (HOPE-GOV) programme to measurable reforms in Nigeria’s primary healthcare and basic education sectors.
Speaking in Abuja on Friday, the National Coordinator of the HOPE-GOV Programme, Assad Hassan, emphasized that the initiative is focused on institutional reforms rather than direct cash disbursement. “It is not just about dishing out the money.
The Health Sector, in particular, stands to benefit from the reforms the programme will achieve,” he said during an implementation coordination visit to the Basic Health Care Provision Fund Ministerial Oversight Committee Secretariat.
Hassan added that the visit aimed to strengthen coordination, provide implementation support, and ensure agencies meet the Disbursement-Linked Indicators (DLIs) and Disbursement-Linked Results (DLRs) required for funding.
“From time to time, we engage with our implementing agencies to provide support and ensure they achieve their results. It is our vision that all agencies attain the incentives set for them,” he said.
The programme is structured as a $500 million Programme-for-Results package. HOPE-GOV Programme Officer, Jamil Abdallah, explained that $480 million is earmarked for disbursement to implementing agencies and state governments, while $20 million is allocated for coordination, capacity building, technical assistance, monitoring, and evaluation.
“The programme focuses on results in areas such as financing availability for primary healthcare and basic education, transparency in sector spending, and improving recruitment, deployment, and performance management of teachers and healthcare workers,” Abdallah said.
He stressed that participating agencies must publish audited financial statements in line with International Public Sector Accounting Standards to access funds.
All 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory have signed on to participate in HOPE-GOV, Abdallah added.
The programme is also evaluating Independent Verification Agents who will assess agency performance during the first year of reforms before incentive disbursements are made.
Dr Aishatu Abubakar Bajoga, Acting Secretary of the BHCPF Secretariat, affirmed her agency’s commitment to supporting the programme. “We are ready to work together. This is a work in progress,” she said.
The initiative forms part of broader federal efforts to enhance human capital development by improving governance, accountability, and service delivery in key social sectors. By linking funding to results rather than inputs, HOPE-GOV seeks to address longstanding inefficiencies in public spending at the sub-national level, complementing ongoing reforms under the BHCPF and Universal Basic Education frameworks.
