Request for Proposals - Lagos Education and Access Fund

Overview of the Programme 

The Education Outcomes Fund (EOF), in partnership with the Lagos State Government through the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (LASUBEB), and with support from Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, and the UBS Optimus Foundation, is launching a targeted $25 million outcomes-based financing (OBF) programme to improve the access to and quality of basic education for approximately 200,000 children aged 6–14 in Lagos State, Nigeria. 

The Lagos Education Outcomes Fund (LEAF) has a dual focus: supporting access to education for out-of-school children (OOSC) and enhancing education delivery across participating schools. 

Selected implementing partners will play a central role in: 

• Identifying, supporting, and enrolling out-of-school children aged 6–14 into mainstream public schools through targeted community outreach and holistic support. 

• Providing academic bridging and accelerated learning approaches to ensure school readiness and successful transitions into formal education. 

• Ensuring sustained attendance and retention of enrolled children. 

• Strengthening foundational literacy and numeracy outcomes for all children aged 6–14 in participating schools. 

• Improving teaching quality, assessment systems, and the effective use of data to drive continuous improvement. 

• Promoting inclusive school environments that better support vulnerable learners and reduce dropout risk. 

Through an outcomes-based financing model, payments to implementing partners are made only upon the achievement of predefined and independently verified results. This ensures that funding is directly linked to measurable improvements in enrolment, retention, and learning outcomes. The programme presents a significant opportunity for experienced education providers, consortia, and impact investors to deliver large-scale, measurable impact through an innovative and adaptive results-based model. 

LEAF is grounded in the principle that implementing partners are best placed to understand local barriers and tailor solutions accordingly. Partners are therefore granted flexibility in how they achieve agreed outcomes, enabling adaptation, innovation, and continuous learning in response to complex educational challenges. 

Context 

Despite significant progress in education access, Lagos State continues to face challenges related to OOSC, uneven learning outcomes, and school-level capacity constraints. Barriers at the child and household level, such as economic vulnerability and limited prior learning, interact with school-level challenges, including teaching quality, learning materials, and classroom management. In line with its commitment to improve both access and learning, the Lagos State Government is exploring innovative financing mechanisms as a tool to tackle these challenges. Through this partnership, EOF and Lagos State aim to demonstrate how outcomes-based financing can align incentives around measurable improvements in enrolment, retention, and learning. The programme is intended not only to deliver impact at scale but also to generate evidence to inform future education reforms. 

Purpose of this Request for Proposals (RFP) 

EOF invites proposals from qualified service providers, consortia, and/or impact investors with experience in education delivery, community outreach, and/or results-based financing. Applicants will be selected through a competitive procurement process. The RFP seeks detailed technical and financial proposals outlining applicants’ intervention models, delivery capacity, partnership structures, and financial arrangements. 

Successful applicants will be appointed as grantees under the LEAF Programme and will enter into outcomes-based agreements tied to verified performance against agreed metrics with Lagos State Government and EOF. 

Application Process & Timeline 

Application Materials

EOF will release the following RFP Materials via the EOF website.

• The Terms of Reference (TOR) detailing the Programme’s Design (available for download via the link at the bottom of this page)

• The RFP Document detailing the RFP bidding process and eligibility requirements (available 2 March 2026)

• The Qualification and Technical Proposal Forms for the submission of applicant technical proposals (available 2 March 2026)

• The Financial Proposal Form and Guidance Note for the submission of applicant financial proposals (available 2 March 2026)

• The Template of the Grant Confirmation Letter (Grant Agreement) and annexed Programme Document (available 2 March 2026)

We encourage interested organisations to begin reviewing the TOR in advance of the full RFP publication on 2 March 2026.

How to Apply

1. Applicants are required to confirm their intention to apply by completing the designated form Registration form for RFP proposal submission – Collaboration. 

2. Upon submission of the intention-to-apply form, applicants will receive access to a dedicated submission folder. This folder will contain all required templates and forms and will serve as the primary portal for proposal submission. 

3. Attend the pre-bidding conference to participate in a Programme Q&A, and receive further guidance relating to the RFP process. Attendance is strongly recommended for all applicants. Please share questions via this link, as they will help frame the discussion during the conference. 

4. All proposals must be submitted by the deadline of 15 April 2026, 23:59 WAT via the dedicated submission folder. Late submissions will not be accepted. 

Proposals must include the following: 

• A completed Applicant Information Form (Qualification Forms) 

• All required eligibility documentation 

• A detailed Technical Proposal 

• A Financial Proposal, including a clear budget breakdown 

• Consortium structure and governance arrangements (where applicable) 

• Any additional supporting documentation 

Please note: The Proposal, as well as all correspondence and documents relating to the Proposal exchanged by the Applicant and EOF shall be written in English. The currency of the Proposal shall be in United States Dollars. 

5. After uploading their proposals to the dedicated submission folder, applicants are requested to confirm submission via email to procurement@edufundmea.org. 

Key Dates 

• TOR Publication: 20 February 2026 

• Publication of Remaining RFP Documents: 2 March 2026 

• Deadline for submission of clarification questions: 9 March 2026. Please submit all questions to this live Q&A Padlet. 

• Pre-bid conference: week commencing 9 March 2026 TBC 

• Publication of clarifications and amendments, including final Q&A responses (if any) by EOF: 16 March 2026 

• Deadline for submission of proposals: 15 April 2026 

LEAF Terms of Reference_Final.

Download • 1.67MB