World Bank rewards states with $27m for reforms

Five Nigerian states are set to receive a total of $15 million in performance-based incentives under the World Bank-supported HOPE Governance Programme. This financial reward acknowledges their successful implementation of critical education and healthcare reforms.

The National Coordinator of the HOPE Governance Programme, Assad Hassan, announced that the program, managed by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, has approved $27 million in total incentives for states achieving specific Disbursement-Linked Results (DLRs) in its initial phase. The incentives are determined by an Interim Independent Verification Agent assessing states' performance against program indicators.

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The World Bank-supported HOPE Governance Programme, domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, is set to disburse $27 million as performance-based incentives to states that successfully achieved the Year Zero Disbursement-Linked Results.

Bayelsa, Borno, Kano, Kebbi, and Yobe states emerged as the leading beneficiaries. Each of these five states will receive $1.5 million for adopting comprehensive guidelines for preparing and submitting consolidated work plans for state basic education budgets (DLR 2.1). They will each receive another $1.5 million for adopting similar guidelines for state primary healthcare budgets (DLR 2.2). This totals $3 million per state from these two indicators alone, amounting to $15 million for the five states.

Additionally, other states qualified for incentives under different DLRs. Adamawa, Bayelsa, Borno, Delta, Gombe, Kano, Plateau, Taraba, and Yobe states will receive $500,000 each for adopting harmonized budget guidelines and a chart of accounts for local governments (DLR 2.3). Furthermore, 15 states, including Abia, Bayelsa, Borno, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Plateau, and Yobe, will each receive $500,000 for publishing their 2025 Citizens Budget for basic education and primary healthcare by the February 28, 2025 deadline (DLR 4.1). Hassan emphasized that only states meeting stipulated conditions within specified timelines qualified for these disbursements.

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The incentives are based on the findings and recommendations of the Interim Independent Verification Agent, which assessed states’ performance in meeting the programme’s Disbursement-Linked Indicators.