By Ononye VC
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the sum of ₦320,345,040,835 as the 2023 intervention funds for public tertiary education institutions in the country.
The executive secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, Sonny Echono, disclosed this in Abuja on Wednesday during the annual strategic planning workshop with all heads of beneficiary institutions.
Echono said the meeting was an avenue to receive feedback and evaluate the performance of its intervention lines to enhance a more robust delivery of the agency’s mandate.
According to the TETFund boss, the 2023 intervention cycle will see each university receiving ₦1,154,732,133.00.
Each public polytechnic is also expected to receive ₦699,344,867.00 while the sum of ₦800,862,602 will be received by each college of education in the country.
He said: “I am pleased to inform you that Mr President has approved the 2023 disbursement guidelines in the total sum of ₦320,345,040, 835. On the basis of this, each university shall get, for the year 2023 intervention cycle, the total sum of ₦1,154,732,133.00.
“This comprises ₦954,732,123.00 as annual direct disbursement and ₦200 million as zonal intervention. Similarly, each polytechnic shall get ₦699,344,867.00 comprising ₦569,344,807.00 as annual direct disbursement and ₦130 million as zonal intervention, while each college of education shall get ₦800,862,602 comprising ₦670,862,602.00 as annual direct disbursement and ₦130 million as zonal intervention.
“It is pertinent to note that this represents the highest disbursement to each beneficiary institution, since [the] inception of the Fund.”
Echono further stated that the fortunes of the Nigerian tertiary education sector has improved significantly under Buhari’s administration, saying that between 2015 and now, the total sum of ₦1.702 trillion has been disbursed as education tax collection to public universities, polytechnics and colleges of education compared to a total sum of ₦1.249 trillion disbursed from the inception of the fund in 1993 up to 2014.
