Starting from the finding that the Nigerien education system is very inequitable, the
Government of Niger has incorporated this concern into the PSEF for the period 2014-2024 and
its objective is to “offer quality education to all Nigerien children irrespective of their
geographical origin, their gender or their disability”. Towards this end , the Accelerated
National Education and Training Strategy for Girls and Women (SNAEFFF), proposes
measures relating to the improvement of access to education and training for girls and women,
the redress of inequalities and discriminations with a particular emphasis on specific social
groups, particularly children with disabilities, children from rural communities, nomadic
groups and scattered settlements, children in a state of insecurity.
The SNAEFFF translates the will of the government to speed up education and training of girls
and women through adapted and sustainable solutions.
It is a reference document which defines the major pillars of the strategic guidelines and
implementation mechanisms in order to accelerate the training of girls and women. It is broken
down through a unifying plan of action, a set of actions selected through consensus by the
Ministers in charge of education and training, the technical and financial partners (TFPs),
NGOs and civil society organizations (CSOs) in order to strengthen the educational offer and
demand for girls and women.
Granting of Scholarships
In the socio-economic context of Niger which is characterized by a high incidence of poverty,
lack of material and financial resources on the part of families is a real handicap for the
enrolment of girls. Thus, the need for the Government and its partners to support the young
girls through the award of scholarships and support in-kind. The scholarship is a financial
allocation to a pupil or student to enable the beneficiary to continue with their studies and
obtain better education. The scholarships are generally granted according to merit or depending
on the vulnerability of the beneficiary. To date, there are two (2) types of scholarships for
students in Niger. The first one which targets girls and boys is granted according to criteria
relating to vulnerability. It is funded essentially by the Government to the tune of 1 billion 200
million CFA francs on the average for the secondary cycle annually. For the year 2017-2018,
about 43, 333 students received the scholarship at the two secondary cycles with 42% being
girls and 58% boys. The distribution of the number of beneficiaries is 39.041 (with 43% going
to girls as against 57% to boys) and 4,292 (with 37% going to girls and 63% to boys)
respectively for the first cycle of secondary and middle level. This scholarship is collected in
three tranches quarterly during then school year to the tune of 12.000 CFA francs for the
scholarship holders in the first cycle and 18.000 CFA francs for those in the middle level
education. The second scholarship is dedicated exclusively to girls and it is regulated by Order
No. 00338/MES/SG/DGFEC/DPSF of 21 November 2014, on the award of scholarships to girls
in secondary schools. The decision to institute this specific scholarship for girls is to maintain
them in the basic educational cycle 2 (college) and to limit child marriages. The conditions for
the award are based on vulnerability and living far away from educational institutions. This
scholarship also requires accommodation for the young girl by a host family. It comprises of a
financial component and a material component. The monthly financial component is 20.000
CFA francs distributed between the host family (15.000 FCFA) and the beneficiary girl (5.000
FCFA).
Since the signing of the Order for the award of scholarships to girls still attending schools,
4.879 girls have enjoyed the facility. It is basically funded under the Support Project for
Quality Education (PAEQ) (10%), the SWEDD-Niger Project (49%) and the Support Project
for Bilingual Education (PROSEB) (51%).
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