Dangote pledges $700 million fund over ten years to improve education access and develop skilled workforce nationwide.

Nigerian business mogul Aliko Dangote has announced a $700 million education fund aimed at tackling out-of-school rates and enhancing technical skills across Nigeria.

During a panel discussion featuring Bill Gates and Sheikha Al Mayassa, Dangote highlighted the critical role of innovation, philanthropy, and strategic partnerships in reshaping opportunities across Africa.

“In Africa, we have a population of about 1.4 billion people, so partnership is important,” Dangote said. “Partnership also matters, that is why we partnered with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to eradicate polio in Nigeria. We have a lot of children that are out of school, so what we are going to launch next week is a $700 million fund to fund education. We will run it for ten years, then we review. We are doing that because we have a lot of challenges in Africa, one of which is training.”

Dangote added that the Dangote Petrochemical has trained more than 50,000 Nigerians to ensure smooth operations at the 160,000-barrel-per-day refinery. “The skilled workforce will be redeployed as part of the refinery’s ongoing expansion, while our investment in education will increase talents for industries in Nigeria,” he said.

The initiative is expected to expand access to education, reduce the number of children out of school, and cultivate a pipeline of skilled professionals ready to support Nigeria’s industrial and economic growth. (Arise News)

Update news