By Job Osazuwa

Over the years, many universities in Nigeria have been agitating for more funds to be injected into infrastructure, research, training and other critical areas for the benefit of the students as well as the teaching and non-teaching staff.

It is the belief of many Nigerians that inadequate investment in education has led to the country losing its best brains to other countries that place premium on education for both the rich and the poor.  Total lack or deficiency and decay in infrastructure, dearth in manpower and lack of the political will by the government has set Nigeria’s education system on a perpetual deterioration in the last few decades.

Perturbed by this unpalatable development, scholars, investors, administrators and other stakeholders have continued to canvass the need for all hands to be on deck in order to restore the lost glory in government-owned higher institutions of learning.

Apart from government funding, which is apparently dwindling, one of the ways of sustaining quality education in Nigeria, according to pundits, is for successful Nigerians to be patriotic by donating generously to institutions that moulded them. Besides alumni giving back to their institutions, they submitted that voluntary and non-stop donations from lovers of education, philanthropists and corporate organisations would complement government’s efforts to aid teaching and learning.

This was once again re-echoed in Lagos ahead of the launching of Obafemi Awolowo University Advancement Foundation, an appeal fund of one billion naira and award of recognition for 60 alumni, as part of the activities to mark the 60th anniversary of the institution. The event is slated for today, Saturday December 4, in Ikeja Lagos.

At the event, the Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Prof Eyitope Ogunbodede stated that the reason for setting up the foundation was that across the world, the continued existence, success and overall development of any institution of higher learning depends largely on the financial and material benevolence of her alumni community as well as those of friends, benefactors and other stakeholders.

The VC’s speech as delivered by his representative, Prof. Charles Ukeje, read in part: “This garner support worldwide for the overall development and real-time growth of our renowned university. We are proud that OAU is not only reputed to be Africa’s most beautiful campus but we also boast of highly versatile and accomplished individuals whose tentacles spread across all spheres of human endeavours around the world.

“Indeed, our alumni community worldwide have continued to distinguish themselves, making positive impacts within their immediate environments and at the forefront of advancing humanity, in general.

“Our distinguished alumni, as well as friends and other benefactors, have already started coming forward to extend kind gestures to the university. Many more have been making inquiries as to how they might support their alma mater. We all now have that window of opportunity; one that is going to be open, transparent and accountable, run by women and men of impeccable credentials with the establishment of the OAU Advancement Foundation.

“The foundation will, among other key responsibilities, assist us to reposition the university to meet up with the standard of the 21st century as obtainable in other climes within and outside Africa. It will also help us to maintain and sustain the ideals of the founding fathers of our great institution so that OAU will be ranked first in Nigeria and Africa.”

While fielding questions from journalists, Ukeje, who is the Chairman of the Great Ife 60th Anniversary Celebrations Committee, described the launch of the foundation as a point of advancing on pulling resources together and setting same aside for rainy days for the university.

“Indeed, for those of you who know Ife, those who midwife the university were very deliberate in terms of ensuring that the university could weather the storm in very difficult times. So we feel that establishing this advancement foundation is an effort to update in line with the realities in the 21st century. This new initiative is supposed to respond to the imperative of the 21st century and beyond.”

Responding to how prepared the foundation was to manage the prospective accruing funds, particularly comparing it with Harvard University with billions of dollars endowment fund, Ukeje stated that the activities would be run by the board of private individuals, where the vice chancellor is just a member.

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He said that there are only two or three conditions for which Harvard University spends its endowment fund – during economic recession or war. He assured donors that the money that is going to be generated would not be spent frivolously, but on things that are enduring. He stressed that it would be spent for things that would be for the greater good as and when it is necessary, not for payment of salaries or purchase of buses for students. And the board in its wisdom will do the needful when the need arises, he promised.

The don and university administrator explained further that the previous donations to the institution was run by the university, comprising administrators who themselves are not necessarily business people, but mere teachers.

“So, this one is run by individuals who have vast experience in boardroom, legal profession, in different disciplines, who can bring to bear their experiences. Several of them sit on boards of big firms and we believe that they will be able to do exceptionally well,” Ukeje said.

Could there be any area that OAU is facing certain challenges? In fact, he pointed out that there was no university in Nigeria that is not facing one challenge or the other.

“I think the challenges of public institutions in Nigeria, especially higher institutions are enormous.  When you send your child to primary and secondary schools as many of us have done, and you pay so much, your child now goes to public university and your education budget goes down. Something is wrong with such a society. When you come to OAU, parents’ budget on education is virtually zero.

“So when you hear about the collapse of hostels in any public universities, what you pass in is what goes out. Nigerians need to have a major national conversation about the future of higher education. If we want a standard higher education, we must be ready to fund it. And this is why a lot of private universities are thriving because they charge a lot of fees and they use these fees to improve their university. If you go to a public university today and you go there next year, things may have deteriorated. We cannot live with that contradiction as a nation.

“So the first challenge that we face is funding mostly. I know how many times people like me dip our hands in our pocket to even support our students initiative to manage to pay for things that they cannot pay for. So until we address this fundamental contradiction we will never be able to move the public institution forward.  The bottom line is that public institutions are the biggest ever, where people gain knowledge. It is the public institution that the child of the rich and the child of the poor stay in the same space and the child of the poor could actually excel. As Nigerians we all have to make the commitment to be interested in what happens in the public institutions,” he urged.

Speaking on support from kind-hearted Nigerians to OAU so far, he disclosed that the university has benefited from the magnanimity of individuals across the country and beyond. He stated that the generosity cut across building of hostels, drilling of boreholes, as well as engaging in other business activities within the university.

Said he: “One of our old boys, through his company, committed resources to renovating the Oduduwa Hall. I am talking of up to the tune of N45 million. This is Ecobank foundation and we are very delighted about this and we are hoping that individuals will not just come as individuals to support the university, but also leverage on the institutions that they work for, in terms of corporate social responsibility.

“There are so many multinationals that come, they do training; they do job hunting. Ife is a major hunting ground for big corporations for poaching some of the best of our students. Even before they graduate they have opportunity of going on internship, short trainings and so on.

“The university has an institute currently on entrepreneurship. And we ensure that our students do elective and constant training on entrepreneurship. We are training our students to become increasingly self-reliant and to appreciate that they do not need to look for a formal office job in order to be able to survive.”

To raise abundant fund for the university, Ukeje stressed: “We are also not just reaching out to alumni in the university, we are asking corporations and foundations and individuals who feel very strongly about Ife to also come forward and partner with us.

“In terms of trust, the board is going to be very transparent, accountable. When you put money in the OAU Advancement Foundation, you can go home with your two eyes closed. The board is not only going to determine what are the priorities projects that they want to support in the university, it will receive the resources, invest it and multiply the resources. And this was why we have chosen individuals who have that credibility, and who have distinguished themselves in what they do.”