The figure was highlighted in the Malala Fund’s 2025–2026 Annual Report, published on October 6, 2026, which details the organisation’s efforts to influence policies, financing systems and institutions that determine whether girls can access and complete their education.
The funding is being directed towards organisations and advocates working with girls and communities to address some of the barriers limiting access to secondary education in Nigeria.
The Malala Fund has identified child marriage, gender-based violence, attacks on schools and inadequate education funding among the challenges affecting girls’ ability to remain in school in Nigeria. Its Nigeria programme specifically prioritises strengthening education rights for married girls and young mothers while pushing for increased funding for girls’ secondary education.
The organisation has been investing in Nigeria since 2014 and says its local work combines grantmaking with advocacy aimed at influencing government policies and education budgets.
Malala Fund's Nigeria programme has supported efforts to advance girls’ right to education, including advocacy for stronger implementation of the Child Rights Act, increased education financing and gender-responsive education planning.
In January 2026, the organisation also announced a two-year grant supporting a youth-led coalition working to make education a stronger policy tool for tackling child marriage. The initiative covers national advocacy as well as activities in Adamawa, Borno, Kano, Kaduna and Bauchi states.
The latest funding forms part of a broader global effort by the Malala Fund to support local organisations capable of influencing policies and holding governments accountable for their education commitments.
The organisation's 2026 annual report says more than 122 million girls worldwide remain out of school, highlighting the continuing scale of the global education challenge.
According to the Malala Fund, civil society organisations working directly within communities play an important role in turning government commitments into practical action. Their work includes producing evidence, advocating for policy changes, building coalitions and pushing for education budgets that respond to the needs of girls.
The Fund has also placed particular emphasis on supporting young women-led organisations. Its 2025–2026 reporting highlights the role of young women in shaping education policy and advocacy.
Nigeria remains one of the organisation's priority countries because of its large population of girls facing barriers to education. The Malala Fund currently estimates that nearly five million adolescent girls in Nigeria are out of school, while its country data puts the broader number of girls out of school at about 8.97 million.
The organisation says child marriage remains a significant barrier, noting that girls who marry early are less likely to complete secondary or higher education. It is therefore supporting advocacy aimed at improving policies for married and pregnant adolescent girls to return to school.
Beyond education access, the Malala Fund argues that investment in girls' education has wider consequences for economic participation, health, financial inclusion and future household wellbeing.
The organisation's current five-year strategy focuses on working with local advocates, civil society coalitions and governments to strengthen girls' rights to education while securing the resources required to make those rights meaningful.
For Nigeria, the latest funding comes at a time when education financing and the large number of children outside the formal school system remain major national development concerns.
The Malala Fund's support is therefore expected to strengthen the capacity of local organisations to push for better policies, stronger financing and practical measures that can help more Nigerian girls stay in school and complete their secondary education.
Reporting by TalkNaijaMedia
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