HOW NIGERIA’S TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS CAN SURVIVE, SAYS BOGORO, EX -TETFUND CHIEF

Former Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Abuja, professor Suleiman Elias Bogoro has posited that for the nation’s public universities to survive, they must adopt the non-budgetary funding option.

Bogoro noted that with the prevailing experiences of below 10 percent budgetary allocation by federal and state governments coupled with the current economic situation, more innovative, alternative source of funding for education must be introduced to save public universities which presently hold 92 percent of the overall total university student population in the country.

The former TETfund boss in his convocation lecture at the Plateau State University, Bokkos, Plateau state said with increasing difficulties faced by proprietors and management of both public and private universities, owing largely to irregular funding regimes, there is need for regularity of funding and more innovative and frugal management of resources.

The university teacher in his lecture titled, “Sustainable funding as a catalyst for effective administration of state universities” said despite the recent licensing of state and private universities to cater for increased demands for access into our universities, dwindling resources and inadequate prioritization of education have combined to stifle the otherwise good intentions of state governments.

Bogoro, a lecturer at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi with the positive correlation between higher investment in education and competitive parameters in contemporary knowledge-driven economies, government, citizens and corporate entities must upscale their investment in the sector

“If State governments religiously apply the funding laws that require them and Local Government Councils to contribute specified annual budgetary funds to their universities consistently for 10-20 years, the impact would help in reducing their financial obligations subsequently.

“More importantly, there is urgent need for state governments and citizens to come together and explore more innovative additional sustainable funding windows for state universities like legislation for national or state-level lottery, state education trust fund and consultancy fees among others.

“Besides, with more creativity and innovation by governing councils, management, senate, staff and student unions through peer review of local and overseas universities, one hopes that very soon our public universities will stop going cap in hand, while our private universities would blossom and overtake the public universities, which is the current global trend.