TETFund Executive Secretary, Sonny Echono
Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Arc. Sonny Echono, has called for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s education system to better prepare graduates for the contemporary workforce and address rising youth unemployment.
Making remark at the 13th convocation lecture of Nile University in Abuja on Tuesday, Echono noted that reforms must align curricula, teaching, and institutional priorities with 21st-century economic realities.
The lecture, titled “Redefining the Nigerian Education System for the 21st Century Workforce,” called for urgent need on the part of universities to bridge gaps between theoretical knowledge and practical skills.
“Education must focus on access, quality, and measurable outcomes,” Echono said. Our graduates should acquire skills for national and individual efficiency, technological innovation, and sustainable growth.”
Echono traced Nigeria’s education evolution, noting the inadequacy of colonial-era structures post-independence, and outlined the persistent challenges that continue to hinder progress: insufficient funding, outdated curricula, irregular teacher salaries, policy inconsistency, and poor infrastructure.
According to him, tertiary institutions must respond to societal needs through workforce-oriented programmes, skill acquisition, and research-led innovation.
He commended Nile University’s leadership for demonstrating visionary management, discipline, and integrity, describing their achievements as a benchmark for institutional development. “This milestone reflects what is possible when vision and commitment guide education,” he said.
The TETFund boss urged government and private sector collaboration to modernise education, arguing that sustainable nation-building hinges on producing employable, socially conscious graduates. “Without practical, quality education, national development goals will remain aspirational,” he added.
