TETFund sensitizes 187 higher institutions over access to funds
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) has disclosed that it has sensitized about 187 federal and state tertiary educational institutions in the six geo-political zones of the country between 13th June 13 and October 27, 2017 over how to access its intervention funds.
TETFUND’s Director, Corporate Affairs and Public Relations, Mr Ebikwo Benn, told journalists in Abuja at the weekend that the exercise, which was lauded by the beneficiary institutions could not take place in 11 institutions due to the industrial action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) during the period and other unforeseen circumstances.
He added that the Executive Secretary of TETFund, Dr. Abdullahi Bichi Baffa, has given assurance that the exercise will be conducted in the affected institutions.
He also stated that the sensitization exercise was carried out in line with the determination of Baffa to ensure that the processes for accessing the Fund’s interventions are made transparent to all stakeholders.
According to Ebikwo, Baffa personally led teams to three out of the six geo- political zones in order to reinforce his desire to get rid of all encumbrances encountered in accessing intervention allocations from TETFund.
He noted that some of the encumbrances are as a result of lack of adequate information and unnecessary ambiguities created by some Desk Officers and staff of beneficiary institutions.
The TETFund boss expressed his management’s commitment to ensuring that beneficiary institutions adhere strictly to established guidelines and procedures for the smooth running of the Fund’s operations to achieve maximum impact.
He further explained that the seminar was not only to clear grey areas through detailed presentation of the requirements for each of the Fund’s Intervention Lines but also to ensure a more cordial and effective collaboration between the beneficiaries and management of the fund.
The Daily Times recalls that the sensitisation exercise was in furtherance of the various attempts made in the over 20 years of the Fund’s existence to ensure that beneficiary institutions access funds allocated to them for physical infrastructures and other needs.
During the sensitization workshop, teams drawn from the relevant departments in the Fund such as Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation, Academic Staff Training and Development (AST&D), Education Support Services and Internal Audit Unit made presentations showing the guidelines for the various interventions and the need for full compliance.
The institutions which were yet to benefit from the sensitisation exercise include Federal University of Technology, Akure, University of Lagos, University of Benin, Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun, University of Port Harcourt and Federal University, Lokoja
Augustine Okezie, Abuja
