By Kwin Israel, The Sight News
The Federal Government has said it has invested more than ₦1 trillion in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector over the past two years as part of efforts to improve access to higher education, strengthen infrastructure and enhance the quality of teaching and learning across the country’s universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.
Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, who disclosed this in Abuja during a meeting with members of the National Committee for the Advancement of Occupational Therapy, Audiology and Speech and Language Therapy Education, said the administration of President Bola Tinubu is removing financial barriers that have prevented many qualified Nigerians from pursuing higher education.
According to the Minister, the reforms are aimed at ensuring that no qualified Nigerian is denied access to tertiary education because of financial hardship, while equipping institutions to produce the skilled workforce required for national development and economic growth.
He said President Tinubu’s administration has prioritised investment in human capital development through policies that expand educational opportunities and improve learning conditions across tertiary institutions.
“This President, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has opened up access to students so that not having money, or coming from an indigent family, or your parents being poor, will no longer stop you from achieving the opportunities you can achieve in life. Education is no longer a barrier for students in this country,” Alausa said.
The Minister stated that ₦250 billion has been invested in the construction of new student hostels nationwide to improve accommodation and create a more conducive learning environment.
He added that more than ₦150 billion has also been committed to rehabilitating existing hostels, classrooms, engineering workshops and other academic facilities to strengthen teaching, learning and research.
On medical education, the minister disclosed that over ₦130 billion has been invested in rehabilitating medical schools and expanding their training capacity, while an additional ₦52 billion has been approved for the provision of modern equipment to 18 medical schools.
He further revealed that nearly ₦30 billion has been invested in establishing 11 medical simulation laboratories to enhance practical clinical training and produce globally competitive healthcare professionals.
Dr. Alausa also said the Federal Government has invested almost ₦110 billion in constructing and rehabilitating engineering workshops and providing modern equipment for Federal Universities of Technology, conventional universities offering engineering programmes and polytechnics.
He described the interventions as among the largest investments ever made in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector, noting that they cover new infrastructure, rehabilitation of existing facilities, specialised laboratories, engineering workshops, modern equipment and institutional capacity development.
According to him, the investments are expected to reposition tertiary institutions to produce graduates with the technical knowledge, practical skills and competencies required to drive innovation, industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
Earlier, Chairman of the National Committee for the Advancement of Occupational Therapy, Audiology and Speech and Language Therapy Education, Dr. Victoria Omua Amu, briefed the Minister on the committee’s progress since its inauguration.
She said the committee has developed a one-year implementation plan, established a governance framework and constituted three specialised subcommittees focusing on advocacy and communication, academic liaison and clinical training, as well as manpower development and transition pathways.
Dr. Amu disclosed that a baseline assessment showed that six Nigerian universities currently offer Audiology programmes, five offer Occupational Therapy, while three offer Speech and Language Therapy programmes.
She added that the committee has commenced consultations with the National Universities Commission, the Medical Rehabilitation Therapists (Registration) Board of Nigeria, universities, professional associations and private tertiary education providers to expand access to the programmes.
The committee, she noted, identified delays in the release of TETFund support as a major implementation challenge.
Responding, the Minister reaffirmed the Federal Ministry of Education’s commitment to working with stakeholders to strengthen tertiary education and ensure that ongoing reforms translate into improved educational outcomes, stronger institutions and greater opportunities for Nigerian students.
