President Bola Tinubu
As part of efforts to improve power supply in tertiary institutions across the country, the Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETfund), Architect Sonny Echono has announced that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s approval of N200 billion additional funding through other sources to address the issue of power on campuses.
Echono disclosed this during the 2025 TETfund Board of Trustees town hall meeting on Wednesday in Abuja.
The amount according to the Executive Secretary was beside the N70 billion the agency is commiting to the project
“And he assured us we were going to explore other sources. And he is doing just that. As we speak, besides the 70 billion that TETFund is committing to this, Mr. President has mobilized more than 200 billion additional funding through other sources to address the issue of power on our campuses”.
“And it is ongoing. Projects are being commissioned. I realize the most recent one was in Owerri, recently commissioned.
Maiduguri is waiting. Calabar is waiting. I think University of Abuja is almost there”.
“And so many other universities are going to be having independent power. So that when you are talking about Band A, Band B, Band C, it is not our language”
“The wonderful welcome and support we have received from His Excellency, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is important to put on record, and today, I do have a civil service background, so I must confess that it is not usual for us who were taught in the service. that we do more and talk less, and in our time we were even made to swear to the official secret act”.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Chairman of the TETFund Board of Trustees, Rt Hon Aminu Bello Masari explained that the Town Hall Meeting represents a significant milestone in the collective journey toward building a more transparent, inclusive, and responsive tertiary education system.
He added that it was a deliberate initiative to bring the Fund closer to its stakeholders and the communities.
He acknowledged and appreciate the visionary leadership and commitment ofPresident Bola Ahmed Tinubu, whose Renewed Hope Agenda has provided the policy foundation and inspiration for the reforms in the tertiary education sector.
He also commended Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Said Ahmad, for their steadfast support and guidance to the Board and Management of the Fund.
“Their leadership and engagement have been instrumental in driving our shared mission to reposition tertiary education as the engine of national development”, he said.
Bello noted that since the inauguration of the current Board of Trustees by President Tinubu, they have embraced a reform-driven agenda that aligns fully with the Renewed Hope agenda anchored on three pillars:
- Transforming tertiary education into a driver of innovation and productivity;
- Strengthening accountability, transparency, and impact measurement; and
- Expanding the frontiers of research, technology, and entrepreneurship.
“Our overriding goal is to ensure that TETFund interventions translate directly into tangible improvements in the quality of teaching, learning, and research, while also making Nigerian graduates more competitive in the global knowledge economy”.
He explained that under the leadership of Mr. President, the Fund has sponsored three thousand three hundred and thirty two (3332) Masters and four thousand seven hundred and ninety six (4796) PhD for the local component of the TETFund Scholarship for Academic Staff.
“Furthermore, he disclosed that the Fund continued to support teaching practice, conference attendance, research and development thereby ensuring that Nigerian tertiary institutions are well equipped with the right workforce of highly trained and globally exposed academics.
“This sustained investment in human capital is about nurturing a generation of innovators and thought leaders capable of transforming the nation’s economy and society.
In the area of infrastructure, the impact of TETFund is visible across the length and breadth of this country”, he added.
