FG approves N6 billion to tackle insecurity, improve learning in tertiary institutions

The Federal Government (FG) has disclosed that the sum of N6 billion had been invested in the 2023 Intervention Budget for security infrastructure in tertiary institutions across the country.

It added that it is set to release a total sum of N18 billion to six public universities under its Special High Impact Intervention.

Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) Sonny Echono, disclosed this during a press briefing in Abuja.

Giving a breakdown of the 2023 Intervention Budget of N320 billion, recently approved by President Muhammadu Buhari, Echono said each of the universities would be given the sum of  N1 billion each, the sum of  N1 billion will be given to six polytechnics and six colleges of education will also get  N1 billion each while saying that over 95 percent of the N320 billion total TETFund’s disbursement of 2023 would go directly to beneficiary public tertiary institutions.

Echono said the remaining five percent of the allocation would be used for staff salaries and allowances, project monitoring, and zonal capital projects.

He said that 62 percent of the total disbursement (representing N198 billion) constituted the institutions’ annual direct disbursement, while 20 percent of the disbursement (representing N64.2 billion) would be used for special disbursement.

The Special Intervention is usually at the discretion of the Board of Trustees for which allocations are zonal-based and are done equitably by the decision of the Board as enshrined in the enabling Act.

According to Echono, the Special High Impact Intervention seeks to massively inject funds into selected tertiary institutions to achieve a major turnaround through Programme Upgrades and Improvement in the teaching and learning environment.

“Beneficiaries were selected based on the age of the institution per geo-political zones of Nigeria among other criteria.”

“For this year, the special impact will be given to six universities which are, the North Central zone we have Ibrahim Babangida University Lapai, the North-East zone we have Federal University Wukari in Taraba State and the North-West we have Federal University Birnin Kebbi.

“In the South-East we have Imo State University of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences while in the South we have Edo State University, and in the South West we have the Federal University of Technology Akure, Ondo State.”

The beneficiary polytechnics are: “Federal Polytechnics Offa, Federal Polytechnic Gombe, Federal Polytechnic Kabo, Kano State, Anambra State Polytechnic, Federal Polytechnic of Oil and Gas, Bonny and Oyo State College of Agriculture and Technology, Igboora are to get N1billion each”.

“Also, Plateau State COE, Federal COE Yola, Federal COE Zaria, Enugu State COE, Delta State COE, and Taiye Solarin COE are to get N1 billion each, “Echono added.

“As I said last year six universities benefitted. We zone six every year and pick one from each zone. Next year another six will be picked and the same applies. You also noticed that there is a balance between the state and federal institution and that is how we spread it”, he revealed.

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