First bank partners Lagos state in N5bn COVID-19 support for private schools

First bank of Nigeria. in partnership with the Lagos State Government in Nigeria, has launched a N5 billion ($13 million) support fund to help reduce the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on low-cost private schools in Lagos by ensuring lending at an attractive interest rate.

This was disclosed via the state governor’s Twitter handle yesterday.

According to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, “With access to funding for privately owned schools and vocational training centres in the state, we are confident that this programme, under the partnership between @FirstBankngr and @LSETF will help accelerate a sustainable return to learning and skills acquisition.”

The programme will provide access to finance where participating schools can each be availed up to N5 million as well as capacity development, business and financial advisory. The facility will benefit 2000 low-cost schools with amounts ranging from N500,000 to N5million.

According to Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, Chief Executive Officer, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, “at FirstBank we recognise the indelible role played by the education sector in the growth of any economy and this underscores our partnership with Lagos State Government for continuous development of the education services in Lagos State and the nation as a whole. The commitment by the Lagos State Government – including this partnership – to enable schools is quite commendable as this will mitigate the challenges caused by the lockdown on the education sector following the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“With the single-digit funding targeted at about 2,000 low-cost private schools in the State, we are delighted at this opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to the development of education in Lagos State, thereby contributing our quota to further the mandate of the Lagos State Government – in partnership with LSETF – on economic growth, enhanced opportunities for employment and bridging societal gaps in education,” he concluded.

Commenting on the Eduloan programme, Mrs Bola Adesola, Chairperson, Board of Trustees, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) stated that; “According to the NESG the Education Sector remains a growth area for job creation and a report on job creation by the NBS states that the Education Sector is one of the top 5 sectors that created over 59m jobs in 2019. This fact is buttressed by the data collected by LSETF in previous loan programmes. The objective of the LSETF-FirstEdu loan is to create employment, improve the quality of education for our youth by providing access to affordable finance to low-cost private schools and vocational training centres.

“We are confident that this intervention fund, which is complemented by our free professional and institutional support structures, will ensure that the education ecosystem in Lagos State will witness an improvement in the overall learning outcomes for our children, while positively impacting on the Lagos local economy through wealth and job creation.,” she stated.

To access the funds, applications should be submitted via the LSETF portal for screening while successful applicants will be passed on to FirstBank for the loan appraisal and disbursement process. The loan is meant for working capital and asset finance to enable schools resuscitate their practice, acquire needed materials, upgrade their facilities, as well as pay staff salaries in order to bounce back, especially after the lockdown.