The House of Representatives Committee on Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) and Related Services has pledged the committee’s commitment to engaging with tertiary institutions in Kaduna State to address challenges in accessing crucial intervention funds.
The Committee Chairman Mariam Onuoha made this known when she led the committee members to Kaduna State government house on a courtesy visit said the key mandates of this committee is to ensure proper oversight of the tertiary intervention and to make proper account of all the monies that have been disbursed to bridge infrastructure gap and improve teaching and learning across all tertiary institutions.
She raised concern on issue of over N500 billion in unassessed funds currently held by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), earmarked for the nation’s tertiary institutions.
According to her,the TETFund intervention goes to three major state owned tertiary institutions in Kaduna State; Kaduna State University, Nuhu Bamali Polytechnic, Zaria, College of Education, Gidan Waya.
She explains that Kaduna State University, have N547m unaccessed fund totaling , and this ranges from physical infrastructure, entrepreneurship, project monitoring, ICT support, library development, zonal intervention, academic staff training and development, institution based research, publication of journals, conference attendance, manuscript development, equipment fabrication, advocacy and teaching practice.
He noted that, these lines of interventions have also been extended to Nuhu Bamali Polytechnic, Zaria.
While they also have the unaccessed intervention for Nuhu Bamali Polytechnic standing at N724million. For College of Education, Gidan Waya, we have it at 30million.
Onuoha noted that three institutions in Kaduna state have a combined N1.3 billion in unaccessed funds.
She pointed out the stringent conditions that have prevented many institutions from accessing these funds and announced the committee’s plan to conduct a nationwide tour to understand and address the specific barriers educational institutions face.
She assured that the committee is committed to ensuring these funds are disbursed and utilized effectively.
Onuoha also commended Governor Uba Sani’s administration for its dedication to education and expressed the committee’s readiness to collaborate with local institutions to facilitate the timely release and efficient use of available funds.
Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, thanked the committee for their efforts to resolve the challenges that impede higher education institutions from accessing federal intervention funds.
She encouraged the heads of the state’s tertiary institutions to openly share their challenges, particularly those related to fund access, to foster a collaborative approach to finding sustainable solutions.
The meeting, attended by leaders from various federal educational institutions in the state
She also underscored the importance of maintaining consistent standards across all departments and elevating the state’s educational institutions to new heights.