The LEGO Foundation and Co-Impact have selected seven locally rooted organisations in Nigeria and Kenya as programme partners under a five-year, $30 million partnership aimed at strengthening public education systems and improving learning and wellbeing outcomes for children affected by conflict and crisis.
The organisations, announced on September 17, include four Nigerian and three Kenyan organisations, with most of the selected partners led by women.
The partnership, launched in 2026, focuses on strengthening education systems in both countries to better respond to the needs of children and communities affected by conflict, displacement and other crises.
The selected organisations bring expertise spanning early childhood development, foundational learning, refugee and host-community inclusion, psychosocial wellbeing, safeguarding and education governance.
In Nigeria, the programme partners are TaRL Africa, Common Heritage Foundation, Centre for Girls’ Education and Restoration of Hope Initiative.
The Kenyan partners are Girl Child Network, Basic Needs Basic Rights and Madrasa Early Childhood Programme.
According to the organisations, the partners will pursue different approaches within their respective areas while working towards a common goal of improving the systems that support children affected by conflict and crisis to continue learning and recover from disruptions.
The initiative comes amid increasing conflict and displacement globally, which the organisations said are affecting the lives and education of millions of children.
The partners entered the design phase of their grants in August, where they began working with Co-Impact, the LEGO Foundation, strategic advisers and peer organisations to refine their individual strategies, strengthen learning and measurement frameworks and identify areas for collaboration across the programme.
In Nigeria, TaRL Africa will focus on foundational literacy and numeracy through Teaching at the Right Level, an approach it has worked with governments to integrate into public education systems.
Common Heritage Foundation will focus on education governance, community accountability and strengthening public education systems in collaboration with state and local governments.
The Centre for Girls’ Education brings experience in adolescent girls’ education, safe schools, mentoring and trauma-informed approaches, while Restoration of Hope Initiative will draw on its work in conflict-affected communities to address education, child protection and psychosocial support.
In Kenya, Girl Child Network will work across foundational learning, psychosocial support, girls’ education and school re-entry, with a particular focus on refugee and host-community children.
Basic Needs Basic Rights will build on its work integrating psychosocial wellbeing and resilience into public education systems, while the Madrasa Early Childhood Programme will contribute its experience in early childhood development, teacher development and community-based early learning.
The LEGO Foundation and Co-Impact said the selection represents a new stage in the partnership and could create opportunities for additional funders to support locally led approaches to improving education, wellbeing and inclusion for children affected by crisis in Nigeria and Kenya.
