Oluwatobi Adu 
ABUJA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s skills development agenda receives a major boost as the World Bank endorses the SPESSE project and approves additional financing, citing strong performance and measurable impact across key sectors.
In a release on Wednesday, the approval follows a December 2025 Implementation Support Mission, during which the Bank assesses progress under the original funding and clears the project for expansion.
SPESSE—Sustainable Procurement, Environmental and Social Standards Enhancement—addresses chronic shortages of skilled professionals in procurement, environmental safeguards and social standards.
According to the World Bank’s Aide Memoire, all four Project Development Objective indicators are fully achieved, with implementation progress rated satisfactory following independent verification covering January to June 2025.
World Bank Task Team Leader Ishtiak Siddique, alongside National Project Coordinator Dr Joshua Atah, leads the mission, which confirms that 12 of 18 performance-based conditions are already met. Five remaining targets are scheduled for completion by June 2026.
Delivered through six Centres of Excellence hosted by universities across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones, the programme strengthens institutional capacity and aligns training with global best practices.
Stakeholders engaged include the Bureau of Public Procurement, the Ministries of Finance, Environment and Women Affairs, and the National Universities Commission.
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