In 2025, community-based education NGOs in Nigeria faced an unprecedented crisis after USAID abruptly reduced and withdrew funding. Programs were left incomplete, staff contracts terminated, and communities were suddenly uncertain about the future of critical services.
The challenge went beyond financial loss. Years of trust, engagement, and carefully built learning cycles were disrupted. Behavioral change curricula, education initiatives, and community-focused interventions that rely on consistency and sustained delivery were suspended mid-stream, threatening to undo progress and weaken community confidence.
As international aid declined, GCE-US member Development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC) responded swiftly by repurposing 2025 funding to launch the NGO Support Initiative (NSI), a rapid-response mechanism for Nigerian NGOs affected by lost USAID funding or changing donor priorities. NSI provided flexible grants to help organizations stabilize operations, complete ongoing programs, and adapt delivery models to local contexts. Seventeen NGOs, mostly women-led and community-rooted, received support across education, gender equality, livelihoods, health, climate action, and digital skills.
Education was central to NSI, delivered both as a primary focus and integrated within other programs, covering five main areas: digital and technology education, rights and civic education, education in emergencies, financial literacy and livelihoods education, and health and wellbeing education. Rising Hope Girls Educational Foundation, Webfala, and Blue Sapphire Hub Foundation led digital and technology education, reaching 947 learners; Rising Hope trained teachers and students, established a digital lab, and funded school fees for 100 indigent girls. Webfala ran the SheGrows Digital Bootcamp, equipping young women with digital, business, and life skills, while Blue Sapphire Hub Foundation provided data protection awareness and training program.
Other grantees integrated education across sectors: FLACHS and VIWADA delivered financial and agricultural literacy for women farmers in Nasarawa and Benue States; Heal the Youth Foundation combined nutrition education with business seed grants. BAOBAB and FOMWAN promoted women’s empowerment and gender sensitivity through civic and rights education; ICIR taught sexual abuse reporting in higher institutions. Unique Royal Sisters and Headfort Foundation focused on health and wellbeing education for vulnerable populations, including people living with HIV, female sex workers, and incarcerated individuals. Resonat Spei Humanitarian Hub and GEPaDC delivered education in emergencies, combining literacy, governance, and social behavior change in conflict-affected communities. WEWE and NNEW strengthened community accountability, GBV awareness, and economic inclusion through embedded education.
This deliberate integration of education served as a sustainability strategy, equipping individuals and communities with transferable knowledge and skills that extend beyond grant cycles. Grantees reported lasting impacts, including increased confidence among girls, improved economic participation among women, and restored trust in communities previously disrupted by funding cuts.
Looking ahead, the education-focused grantees aim to scale program, reach more learners, and multiply impact through peer education models, stronger community partnerships, and expanded learning infrastructure.
dRPC has documented these outcomes and is currently developing a dedicated database of education-sector NGOs for funders seeking credible local partners. The NSI has demonstrated how locally led responses can protect learning and build resilience as global aid systems continue to shift.