A former Secretary to the Oyo State Government, SSG, and the Maye Balogun of Ibadanland, Barr. Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, has said the greatest developmental problem facing tertiary institutions in Nigeria today is inadequate funding.
The All Progressives Congress, APC, senatorial candidate for Oyo South senatorial district in the 2023 National Assembly election siad this while delivering a lecture at the opening day of the Polytechnic Ibadan branch of Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU, Week 2022, on Monday, November 21.
The lecture, titled: ‘Financing Higher Education Institution,’ held at the Cooperative Building, the Polytechnic, Ibadan.
The former chairman of the Oodua Investment Company Limited described education as the “process of receiving or giving systematic instruction, especially in school environment.”
Barr. Alli classified higher education institutions to include: universities, colleges, community colleges, vocational/trade school/institute’s of technology and distance learning.
He further described finance as a process of raising funds for expenditure, adding that the United Nations’ Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO, benchmarked 15 to 20 per cent of annual budget for education.
Barr. Alli however lamented that Nigeria’s allocation to education in the last five years fell short of the UNESCO recommendation.
He said, “Nigeria’s education spending for 2018 was 7.04 per cent; 7.05 per cent for 2019; 6.7 per cent in 2020; 5.68 per cent in 2021 and 5.39 per cent in the current year 2022.
“Meanwhile, the bulk of education budget in 2022 will go to the 28 parastatals under the Federal Ministry of Education,as well as 43 federal universities, over 25 polytechnics, 21 Federal Colleges of Education and 104 Unity Schools.”
The Maye Balogun of Ibadanland also revealed that in Oyo State, allocation to education in 2019 was 10 per cent, while 12 per cent was allocated to education in 2020. It was 21 per cent in 2021 and 18.37 per cent in 2022.
Insisting that tertiary education a chronically underfunded, Alli said, “Our enthusiasm for education has not been matched with financial and developmental commitments.”
He also identified four major effects of inadequate funding of education to include: inadequate basic and essential facilities; poor mad demoralizing conditions of service, formulation of new and disadvantageous pension scheme and discontinuation of federal government scholarships and bursary schemes.
Highlights of the lecture was the award of excellence presented to Barr Alli, after the rendition of his citation by the chairman of the NASU Week Organising committee, Comrade Sunday Tayo Okeyinka.
Speaking earlier, the chairman of Ibadan Polytechnic branch of NASU, Comrade Ibrahim Adekunle Akande, welcome all guests and the guest lecturer to the 2022 NASU week.
Akande said that funding tertiary institutions in Nigeria is problematic, but called on Nigerians to use this electioneering period to be objective in votinv the right leadership during the 2023 general elections.
In her goodwill message,Mrs Oyin Adéjọbí, Rejoices with Ibadan Polythecnic NASU on the occasion of her 2022 Week.
Insisting that all Non-Academic staff of Ibadan Polytechnic belongs to NASU, Mrs Adéjọbí appealed to NASU not to relent in doing what it knows how to do best.
The Polytechnic, Ibadan also used the occasion of the NASU week to celebrate their chairman, Comrade Akande, whose birthday coincide with the lecture.
