From: Olanrewaju Lawal,Birnin-Kebbi
Former Vice Chancellor of the Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, Prof. Aminu Salihu Mikailu, has urged tertiary institutions in Nigeria to utilise researches and entrepreneurs in their various campuses as an alternative means of generating more Internal Generated Revenue (IGR) to sustain education in the country.
Prof. Mikailu, who was also former Vice-Chancellor of Kaduna State University, Kaduna and Nassarawa State University, Keffi, stated this while delivering a Seminar Paper titled “Funding Options for Sustainable University Education in Nigeria” held at Federal University Birnin-Kebbi, in Birnin-Kebbi, on Wednesday.
He explained that tertiary institution authorities must identify innovative means especially in entrepreneurship programmes through which they could augment inadequate funding in the tertiary institutions.
The university don also noted that the institutions must also find ways of funding innovative researches for senior academics which, he believed, would be essential in promoting sustainable university education across the country.
His worlds: “Universities must identity the need for improved funding through innovation, self-reliance and entrepreneurship as necessary tools for their survival in the 21st century. In addition to government grants, they must be allowed to charge appropriate fees, which is the surest way of boosting their IGR,” he said.
Prof. Mikailu also said one of the problems confronting universities in Nigeria, in terms of funding, was lack of commitment from proprietors. He lamented that this was aggravated by the wrong notion of investing in setting up universities as a source for making profit, by Proprietors of private universities.
He said there were also difficulties in honouring upward reviews of salaries and allowances agreed by the Federal Government and the labour unions, high cost of funding capital projects, among others.
“University education occupies a central position in the priority list of countries concerned with excelling in technological and socio-economic progress. This is fully captured in Nigeria’s various national policies on education 2004-2013.
“Although the current picture of education at the University level in Nigeria seems grim largely due to inadequate funding, there is evidence of significant expansion both in enrolment and number of institutions: from one University in 1960 to 40 federal; 44 state and 75 privately owned in 2017. The student enrolment has moved from 360,000 in 2000 to well above one million currently,” he added
He recommended that launching of endowments, linkages with local and international NGOs, charging appropriate tuition fees at all levels, investments entrepreneurship and creating consultancy services units would be panacea for addressing the issue.
Mikailu added that effective participation of Managements in negotiations for increased funding, provision of special grants to newly established universities during the first phase of their operations, seeking assistance from local and international donor agencies and other individual philanthropists would be key in providing support and community service for the institutions.
The former Vice-Chancellor further stressed the need to link up budgetary allocations with three key missions of universities which are teaching, research and community service.
“Both Managements and Councils of universities must continue to seek for greater autonomy so as to be able to source for funds and to effectively plan and control the utilization of financial resources and operate within the needed level of liquidity. However, there it must be emphasized that with greater autonomy, there is need for enhanced display of transparency and accountability,” he explained
In his address, the Vice Chancellor, Federal University Birnin-Kebbi, Prof. Bello Bala Shehu, who expressed appreciation to the guest speaker for the in-depth presentation, was optimistic that the takeaways of the paper would be put into practice by not only the Management, but also the entire University community.
Represented by the immediate past Acting Vice Chancellor of the institution, Dr. Sahabi Maidamma Jabo, the Vice Chancellor maintained that although the University was battling with meagre Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and overhead, the authorities have put in place far-reaching blueprint to transform the University in no small measure.