The Federal Government has directed all tertiary institutions in Nigeria to immediately reconcile and utilise unaccessed and unutilised education intervention funds within 30 days or risk sanctions.
Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, CON, issued the directive during a strategic meeting in Abuja with Vice Chancellors, Rectors, Provosts, Bursars, and Procurement Officers from public universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
He described the failure of some institutions to utilise intervention funds meant for infrastructure and academic development as a major setback to national progress, warning that the era of idle allocations was over.
“This meeting is not for blame games but to move forward collectively. Resources that could have transformed our classrooms, laboratories, and libraries have remained idle for years due to bureaucratic bottlenecks. That must change now,” Dr. Alausa said.
The Minister directed all beneficiary institutions to submit detailed reports of unused allocations within 30 days, noting that any unutilised funds would henceforth be redirected to priority projects.
Dr. Alausa expressed concern over the “huge sums of money lying unutilised in the coffers of the Central Bank of Nigeria,” adding that such negligence deprives students of improved learning facilities and limits institutional growth. He stressed that the administration is determined to reverse the trend through transparency, accountability, and performance-driven management.
To enhance compliance, the Ministry plans to introduce new capacity-building and mentorship programmes for institutional heads, bursars, and project coordinators, focusing on project management, procurement planning, and timely reporting. Quarterly progress reviews will also be conducted, with sanctions for defaulters.
In addition, Dr. Alausa announced plans to launch a public transparency dashboard that will display Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) disbursement and utilisation data, ensuring the public can track how funds are spent.
“Every TETFund naira represents public trust. We owe it to Nigerians to ensure these resources are spent efficiently and visibly,” he stated.
He reaffirmed that TETFund would adopt a stricter compliance framework and a results-based funding approach to ensure that disbursements produce measurable impact. Institutional heads, he said, must drive accountability, while oversight bodies must diligently monitor and flag irregularities.
In 2025 alone, TETFund allocated ₦1.6 trillion to public tertiary institutions nationwide, with funding focused on campus security, healthcare infrastructure, and direct intervention projects.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Abel Olamuyiwa Enitan, represented by the Director of University Education, Hajiya Rakiya G. Iliyasu, described the issue of unutilised funds as a “national emergency” requiring collective responsibility.
“The continued non-utilisation of funds undermines the quality of education and hinders national development. This meeting is a call to action,” she said.
The Federal Government reaffirmed its commitment to optimising education resources for greater efficiency and impact across Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the Ministry said it remains resolute in ensuring that every allocation translates into meaningful infrastructure, improved learning environments, and sustainable institutional growth nationwide.
