The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has announced an allocation of N1 billion for the construction of student hostels across 12 educational institutions in Nigeria as part of its 2024 intervention cycle.
This disclosure was made by Executive Secretary of TETFund, Sonny Echono, during a one-day workshop entitled ‘Emerging Areas of Students Needs in Beneficiary Institutions’ held in Abuja.
According to Echono, the beneficiary institutions—comprising six universities, three polytechnics, and three colleges of education—are spread across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.
The funding, he explained, will serve as an equity contribution in partnerships with private developers for the construction of the hostels.
The Executive Secretary acknowledged the persistent issues of student accommodation, which include overcrowding in existing dormitories and many students having to live off-campus.
Echono also highlighted the long-standing government efforts to build student hostels nationwide and the necessity of involving the private sector through Public Private Partnership (PPP) models to address these challenges effectively.
In addition to housing, the Fund is focusing on enhancing the teaching profession and the effectiveness of teaching practice interventions for educators and student teachers.
Concluding his remarks, Echono noted a recent directive from the Federal Ministry of Education, which included recommendations from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission on teaching practice allowances.
He stressed the need for a revision of the current funding template for teaching practice to align with these new guidelines, signaling ongoing improvements in the sector’s funding strategy.
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) is an agency in Nigeria, established to provide supplementary support to all levels of public tertiary institutions.
In 2011, the ETF underwent a significant transformation when it was renamed the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
The fund is still largely financed through the 2% education tax paid by registered companies in Nigeria.
TETFund has been instrumental in the development of numerous projects across Nigerian public tertiary institutions, including the construction of lecture theaters, libraries, laboratories, and more recently, the provision of financial support for hostel building to address the accommodation crisis in many institutions.