TETFund earmarks N1bn for hostels’ construction in 12 schools

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) says it has earmarked N1 billion for the construction of hostels in 12 institutions under the Fund’s 2024 intervention cycle.

The Executive Secretary of the Fund, Sonny Echono, disclosed this at a One-Day Workshop on ‘Emerging Areas of Students Needs in Beneficiary Institutions’, in Abuja on Tuesday.

Echono said the 12 institutions (six universities, three Polytechnics, and three colleges of education), across the six geopolitical zones, were identified and selected to benefit from the N1 billion allocation.

He said the money would be utilised as equity contribution in partnership with private developers to construct hostels in the selected institutions.

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“I am pleased to inform you that the Africa Plus Partners, in partnership with Akwa Ibom State University, will launch the construction of a 1, 600 capacity students’ hostel through the support of TETFund on May 15,” he said.

Echono said the Fund was taking a closer look into some of the age-old problems facing many institutions, including students’ accommodation

“Many of our students are either congested in the dormitories across campuses or living and studying outside the school environment.

“The existing hostels are not only grossly inadequate but most of them are in deplorable conditions especially with regard to functional utility and sanitation.

“This, definitely, will affect the performance and wellbeing of these students,” he said.

Echono noted that in the face of scarce resources, the government had tried over the years to build student hostels across the country.

He said the government appeared overstretched and unable to meet the ever-increasing number of students enroling into the various institutions annually.

“As a result of this, we have at several fora advocated the consideration and involvement of the private sector under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement to provide solutions to the student accommodation crises across institutions,” he said.

He added that the repositioning of the teaching profession and the teaching practice intervention that the Fund had consistently made available to supervisors was another area of concern of the Fund.

He disclosed that the Fund recently received a communication from the Federal Ministry of Education regarding the presidential directive to TETFund on the support of teaching practice.

He, therefore, stressed the need to rework the teaching practice funding template currently in use, in line with the communication.

Speaking, National President Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Anderson Ezeibe, stressed the need for TETFund to activate a platform that will ensure monitoring at institutional level.