President Bola Tinubu has approved a substantial intervention fund of N683.43 billion for public tertiary schools in 2024, as disclosed by Sonny Echono, the Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
This announcement came during TETFund’s strategic planning meeting with heads of beneficiary institutions in Abuja.
Echono outlined the fund distribution, with 90.75% earmarked for direct disbursement, 8.94% for designated special projects, and 2.27% allocated for responding to emerging issues.
For the 2024 intervention cycle, each university is set to receive N1.91 billion, polytechnics N1.17 billion, and colleges of education N1.40 billion.
This substantial intervention fund aims to address the persistent calls for improved funding in Nigeria’s public schools, which have led to prolonged strikes by lecturers. Past disputes have included demands for better pay and enhanced facilities in these institutions.
Notably, in late 2022, university lecturers suspended an eight-month strike, highlighting challenges related to pay, welfare, and deteriorating facilities.
This strike, initiated by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), affected federal government-owned universities. ASUU has a history of protracted strikes, with a notable nine-month hiatus in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, emphasizing consistent demands for increased funding, better pay, and upgraded facilities.
