Lagos — The Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank yesterday approved a total of $230 million for Nigeria. A breakdown of this amount showed that $180 million International Development Association (IDA) credit was mearnt to finance Science and Technology Education at the Post-Basic (STEPB) level in federal institutions in Nigeria. While the $50 million IDA credit is for additional financing of the HIV/AIDS Program Development Project Nigeria. The original credit of $90.3 million was earlier approved in 2001.

The STEPB Project aims to produce more and better qualified Science and Technology graduates and higher quality and relevant research. The project is expected to support capacity enhancement in Science and Technology through competitive Grant funding mechanisms and a transparent review process.

World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Hafez Ghanem said "This project is important for improving Science and Technology in Nigeria. It will help Nigeria in the fight against poverty, which is also the main goal of the Bank".

The project, to be implemented by the Federal Ministry of Education, is designed to provide merit-based funding to pilot innovations that render economic and social benefits in line with the Federal Government's National Economic and Empowerment Development Strategy (NEEDS).

It supports activities to improve Science & Technology outcomes in education. This includes policy and planning, teaching, learning and research. The aim is to produce more graduates who possess the relevant skills for the labor market and the expanding non-oil economy. It will also promote better and more relevant research.

Lead Education Specialist in Africa Human Development in the World Bank and Task Team Leader of the Project, Jacob Bregman said "The Nigerian Government has launched an ambitious program to improve its Science and Technology research and development. The project design has benefited immensely from the inclusive participatory process in which workshops, formal and informal stakeholder dialogues and a year's worth of analytic work preceded its formulation. Therefore there is strong ownership by the Nigerian stakeholders. Over eight workshops were organized by the Federal Ministry of Education with participation by Nigerian experts from federal post-basic institutions and research teams, working closely with international Science and Technology experts.

The Federa.l Government of Nigeria is expected to contribute US$20 million as counterpart funds for the project through contributions in kind (services, use of infrastructure and equipment).

Donor partners such as Department for Foreign and International Development (DFID), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), African Development Bank (AfDB), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), UNICEF, UNESCO and others have shown interest in the project.

Meanwhile, Director General, National Agency for the Control of AIDS, Professor Babatunde Osotimehin said "The World Bank credit has effectively catalyzed the multisectoral response to HIV/AIDS in Nigeria. This response, located at the federal, state and local governments level, has attained a momentum which needs to be sustained if we are to achieve the much desired impact in the long term. This is the justification for the additional financing.

The additional funding, he added will help finance the costs associated with the scaling up of the project from 14 to 35 states. It will assist in reducing the risk of HIV infections through behavior change and improving access to HIV/AIDS counseling, testing and care services. It will also strengthen care and support services, reduce stigmatization and build capacity at the national, state and community levels.

In his remarks, Minister of Health, Prof. Epitayo Lambo, said "We are happy with this additional funding for HIV/AIDS program in Nigeria by the World Bank. The Federal Government of Nigeria is committed to the fight against the disease and will continue to provide the needed leadership in the battle against the disease. Since 2000 we have demonstrated this commitment by allocating well over N3.18 billion to the National Action Committee on HIV/AIDS (NACA) and this additional will no doubt supplement our effort towards eradicating the epidemic.

The project has there components: (1) Supporting capacity building activities and operating costs for the Federal and State Agencies for the Control of HIV/AIDS, (2) Supporting the public sector response - Financing HIV/AIDS activities supported by line ministries, and (3) Supporting civil society organizations.

The additional funding is expected to support more targeted civil society actions; complement funding from other donors to improve the availability of testing and treatment, as well as strengthening monitoring and evaluation systems for the project.

Over 3 million Nigerians are living with HIV/AIDS giving Nigeria the third largest HIV/AIDS positive population in the world after India and South Africa. The funding is for three years and would close in 2009.