Education: Investment in Bridge Nigeria Excites NSIA Boss

By Funmi Ogundare

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Mr. Uche Orji has expressed excitement about the investment the organisation is making in Bridge Nigeria, saying that it has gone a lot way in providing access to quality education for children from low-income homes.

Orji, who made this known recently while speaking to journalists on the performance of Nigeria’s sovereign wealth fund in 2020, noted that the authority has been investing for the benefit of Nigerians.

He highlighted some new investments NSIA is set to make that will further help transform the Nigerian economy.
According to him, “our investment in Bridge Academies delivers high quality education to children from low-income homes. This is a fantastic programme. The children are taught using world class curriculum.

The result so far has been stunning.

The literacy and numeracy level of the beneficiary kids have gone up. We believe that very soon we will start to make profit from our investment in the project.”

Orji’s statement supports the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) independent report, that there is equity of learning in Bridge schools, regardless of the child’s socio-economic status. The report revealed that Bridge pupils in Lagos are demonstrating higher achievement than their peers in other low-fee schools or public schools.

According to the report, “In literacy, students at Bridge schools perform better than pupils at other private schools (by 0.35 standard deviation) and public schools (by 1.38 standard deviation).”

The managing director said this shows that Bridge is helping children from poor families in Lagos to learn, improving access to quality education and providing the best overall learning attainment in the local communities.

Bridge Nigeria is a network of nursery and primary schools in underserved communities in Lagos and Osun State, creating opportunities for children to grow and explore their potential.