The House of Representatives at its plenary session on Thursday, 16 November 2017 mandated its Committee on Tertiary Education and Services to investigate the non-release of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) Assessment Intervention Fund to public universities as promised by the Federal Government. The NEEDS Assessment Intervention funds are part of an agreement between the Federal Government (FG) and the Academic Staff Union of Universities in Nigeria (ASUU) for the development of projects in public universities across the country. They were also conceded as part of FG’s long-term strategies to help Nigerian Universities compete favorably with their counterparts around the world.
Presenting the motion on the floor of the House, Hon. Samuel Ikon (PDP: Akwa Ibom) recalled that academic activities at public universities were suspended between December 2011-January 2012 after the FG failed to meet up with its commitments in a 2009 agreement with ASUU. Following this, the Federal Government set up a Committee on National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) to assess public universities with a view to carefully consider specific and general needs of the Universities.
Speaking further, Hon. Ikon said that upon completion of the Committee’s assignment, the Federal Government, at a meeting with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) resolved to release the sum of ₦1,300,000,000,000.00 (One Trillion, Three Hundred Billion Naira) aside annual budgetary allocations and regular Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) interventions to revitalize public Universities. The amount was disbursed as follows:
(i) ₦200,000,000,000.00 — 2013
(ii) ₦220,000,000,000.00 — 2014
(iii) ₦220,000,000,000.00 — 2015
(iv) ₦220,000,000,000.00 — 2016
(v) ₦220,000,000,000.00 — 2017
(vi) ₦220,000,000,000.00 — 2018
In addition, the lawmaker stated that the Federal Government also agreed to release the sum of ₦55,000,000,000.00(Fifty-five Billon Naira) on a quarterly basis into a Dedicated Account at the Central Bank of Nigeria for the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) Assessment projects.
However, he mentioned that till date, only an initial payment of ₦200,000,000,000.00 (Two Hundred Billion Naira) made in 2013 had been paid into the account, leaving an outstanding balance of ₦1,100,000,000,000.00 (One hundred and one Billion Naira) yet to be released. He also stressed the importance of the funds to Nigeria’s educational sector saying that the failure to release the funds when due had hampered the infrastructural development of public universities and could further disrupt the continuance of the academic programmes at the universities if not quickly addressed.
The Committees are expected to report back in four (4) weeks for further legislative action.
