FG condemns state governments’ attitude towards matching grants

The federal government has condemned the attitudes of state governments and tertiary institutions who often delay their accessing matching grants and intervention funds, which are lying fallow in commercial banks.
The supervising minister of education, Bar. Ezenwo Nyesom Wike disclosed this while speaking at the North-East stakeholder’s town hall meeting at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi.

Wike revealed that the number of tertiary institutions being funded by TETfund increased from 164 to 177 last year, and noted  that the fund’s interventions to each public Polytechnics increased from N240 million in 2011 to N337 million in 2012 and N443 million in 2013. Wike also maintained that the interventions for colleges of education increased N190 in 2011 to N319 in 2012 and N390 in 2013.
TETFund’s High Impact Fund, designed to improve infrastructure and development in some selected tertiary institutions into centers of excellence, the minister said, has provided N3 billion to three universities and N1 billion to two polytechnics and colleges of education in the north-east geo-political zone.

While commending TETfund for recently releasing N260 million to 13 beneficiaries for research, in addition to its support for staff development, Wike said the initiatives have ensured the training of about 1,184 lecturers in tertiary institutions within and outside the shores of Nigeria.
Earlier in a welcome address, the host Vice Chancellor, Prof. Hamisu Muhammad of ATBU Bauchi, commended the Federal Government particularly the minister of education for allowing TETfund run its activities independent of interference.