The Centre for Public Accountability has passed a vote of confidence on the Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund, Sonny Echono, over what it described as improved service delivery, infrastructural development and sustained intervention programmes across Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
The group gave the commendation during a press conference held in Abuja on Thursday after conducting what it described as an independent assessment of TETFund’s intervention projects and activities nationwide.
Executive Director of the CPA, Olufemi Lawson, said the organisation deployed independent monitors, procurement observers, researchers and policy analysts to evaluate TETFund’s operations, project implementation processes and compliance with statutory responsibilities.
According to Lawson, findings from the assessment showed that TETFund under Echono’s leadership had continued to strengthen Nigeria’s tertiary education system through infrastructure development, academic staff training, research support and digital transformation initiatives.
“Our findings indicate that TETFund has continued to play a strategic and indispensable role in the growth and development of tertiary education in Nigeria,” Lawson said.
“After a careful and evidence-based assessment of the operations of TETFund under the current leadership, the Centre for Public Accountability is convinced that the present management has demonstrated commitment toward the implementation of the Fund’s statutory mandate,” he added.
The organisation disclosed that records available to it showed that TETFund disbursed over ₦1.8 trillion in intervention funds to public tertiary institutions between 2011 and 2024.
According to the CPA, universities received more than ₦918 billion during the period, while polytechnics and colleges of education got over ₦461 billion and ₦458 billion respectively.
The group further revealed that over 152,000 infrastructural projects had been executed through TETFund interventions nationwide.
The projects reportedly include lecture theatres, ICT centres, laboratories, libraries, entrepreneurship centres, hostels and faculty buildings in beneficiary institutions.
Lawson also stated that the Fund had sustained sponsorship programmes for postgraduate studies, academic conferences and professional development initiatives for lecturers and researchers across Nigerian tertiary institutions.
He added that TETFund’s increasing investment in research, innovation, ICT infrastructure and digital learning had contributed significantly to improving educational delivery in public institutions.
The CPA commended the agency for maintaining intervention activities despite inflation, economic pressures and rising project costs across the country.
Consequently, the organisation formally passed a vote of confidence on the management and board of TETFund led by Sonny Echono and Chairman of the Board, Aminu Bello Masari.
According to the group, the endorsement was based on “evident infrastructural improvements in beneficiary institutions, expansion of academic and research support programmes, sustained intervention funding despite economic constraints, improved strategic planning and stakeholder engagement, as well as relative transparency in intervention allocation and implementation processes.”
However, the CPA urged TETFund to strengthen its monitoring and evaluation systems to ensure efficient project execution and timely delivery of projects across institutions benefiting from the interventions.
The organisation also advised tertiary institutions to ensure prudent management of intervention funds and avoid abandoned projects.
CPA reaffirmed its commitment to continued independent monitoring of government institutions to promote accountability, transparency and effective service delivery across critical sectors.
