TETFund Urges Varsities To Embrace Digital Learning, Strengthen Campus Security
By Alice Etuka, Abuja
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has urged heads of tertiary institutions in Nigeria to accelerate the adoption of digital learning platforms, strengthen campus security and explore public-private partnerships to address infrastructure gaps.
The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arc. Sonny Echono, made the call at the Fund’s annual stakeholder engagement with heads of beneficiary institutions, heads of governing councils and bursars in Abuja on Wednesday.
Echono said the engagement provided an opportunity to review the performance of ongoing projects, assess the impact of interventions and discuss priorities for the 2027 disbursement guidelines.
He explained that the meeting was particularly important given changes in the country’s operating environment, including the transition from the Education Tax to the Development Levy regime and the anticipated impact of the 2027 election cycle on government activities.
The TETFund boss expressed concern over the slow adoption of the Fund’s digital learning platform, noting that institutions were yet to take full advantage of the resources available to staff and students.
He said the platform provides access to over 400 digital libraries, educational resources, anti-plagiarism tools and other learning facilities at no additional cost to institutions after onboarding their students and staff.
According to him, the platform also supports online lectures and hybrid learning, allowing students to access educational content without being physically present in classrooms.
Echono said TETFund expected more than 60 per cent of teaching staff in beneficiary institutions to be conversant with digital learning delivery, urging governing councils to ensure that their institutions fully utilise the facilities.
He also challenged academic institutions to develop policies that would guide the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in teaching and learning rather than attempting to avoid the technology.
He noted that while AI presented challenges, particularly regarding academic dishonesty, institutions must develop internal controls to mitigate its risks while maximising its benefits.
On campus security, Echono said TETFund had introduced special interventions to improve the safety of students and staff through surveillance systems, solar-powered streetlights, communication equipment and patrol vehicles.
He urged institutions to identify security solutions suitable for their environments and work with relevant security agencies to ensure safer campuses.
The Executive Secretary attributed the Fund’s push for increased hostel development to concerns over the safety of students living off campus, observing that fewer than 15 per cent of students currently reside within their institutions.
He encouraged institutions to embrace public-private partnerships (PPPs) for hostel development, explaining that the arrangement would allow private investors to provide funding, construction and facility management while institutions make land available.
Echono said the model would reduce the financial burden on institutions and enable them to concentrate on their core academic responsibilities.
He added that PPP opportunities should extend beyond student accommodation to include shopping malls, pharmacies, commercial farms and other services that could be developed within university communities.
On funding, he warned that dwindling resources, inflation and rising project costs were making it increasingly difficult to implement planned interventions.
He therefore urged tertiary institutions to identify bankable projects capable of attracting private-sector investment, stressing that private investors would only commit funds to ventures with clear economic prospects.
Echono further encouraged institutions to commercialise their research findings, develop patents and transform academic innovations into products and services that could contribute to national development.
He disclosed that TETFund would continue supporting researchers with prototype development, patent registration and copyright protection to improve the commercial value of research outputs.
The Executive Secretary also announced that the Fund would hold the second edition of its National Research Fair in two weeks, providing an opportunity to showcase innovations emerging from tertiary institutions and connect researchers with potential investors.
He said Nigerian universities must move beyond producing academic publications to translating research into practical solutions, adding that intellectual assets could serve as major drivers of economic growth.
Echono maintained that stronger collaboration between tertiary institutions and the private sector was essential to improving the quality of education, expanding infrastructure and making Nigerian institutions globally competitive.
