The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) says it will partner with relevant agencies to boost Artificial Intelligence (AI) studies in the nation’s tertiary institutions.

The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Mr Sonny Echono, said this during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday.

He said the Fund had drastically scaled up textbook production in addition to other initiatives such as ICT centres to position Nigeria as a leader in AI in Africa.

He said this was part of TETFund’s contribution to the nation’s quest to tap into the multi-trillion dollars global digital economy.

According to him, AI is one of the few subject areas where the Fund could send scholars abroad for further training because it had not fully developed in Nigeria.

“We don’t send anybody outside anymore. But AI is a new and expanding field. It is one of the few areas we are training people abroad because we want to lead in Africa,’’ he told NAN.

He said the Fund had supported the development of AI textbooks, covering topics such as AI in teaching and learning, ethics, and curriculum development.

Echono said the aim was to boost the use of AI and to get the tertiary institutions to begin to exploit and use it in teaching and learning.

He said that in addition to book development, TETFund had trained over 3,000 scholars in AI and emerging ICT trends in the last two years in collaboration with leading institutions.

He explained that the initiative had resulted in the ICT training of over 17,000 educators through the International Computer Driving License (ICDL) programme.

“We started with general ICT training because we’ve been doing a lot of ICT training. If the teacher is not ICT-savvy, even for him to put his lecture on the platform is a problem.

“For him to interact with the students on the platform or to send his mark, to do his marking scheme, to relate, to get presentations, even zoom meetings would be a problem he must be ICT literate.

“After that we started letting them understand how they can use ICT, how they can leverage on it to improve the quality of their delivery and the experiences of their students,” he said.

“We want to leapfrog others in ICT, robotics. We are coming very strong in robotics now, but we are late comers, some people are already doing it before us.

“But we don’t want anybody to be ahead of us on this continent. So we are pushing those frontiers,” he said.

Echono also said that the present TETFund management inherited a stagnated book development programme that published only 20 books in 13 years.

He said that upon assuming office in 2022, he challenged the book development committee to meet ambitious targets of producing more books.

“I said, in the first year, you must do 50, if not I’m going to disband it, we’re wasting money coming to do meetings, talking, and not seeing the books.

“Later, I said I want to see up to 100 books being published and they said it can be done. We’ll give you all the support, publicise and advertise to Nigerian authors.

“We identified the subjects where we do not have enough textbooks. We Tasked the professors and all the experts in that field to put things in order..

Echono said this challenge spurred the book development committee as TETFund published 50 books in 2023, another 60 shortly after with another tranche of 50 textbooks published recently.

He explained that another batch of 50 textbooks was currently in under production. (NAN)

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has demanded justice for the five students of the Osun State University (UNIOSUN) who lost their lives in an auto crash near Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

NANS South West General Secretary, Oluwole Olutunde Aboke in conjunction with NAUS CMC Osun (JCC Osun), and NANS South West (Zone D), in a petition addressed to President Bola Tinubu dated March 24, 2025, accused the Silver Transport Company of negligence, indifference and failure to take responsibility for the accident involving the students.

The students’ body accused the transport company of gross negligence, recklessness and utter lack of accountability in connection with the tragic accident.

NANS said it was disturbing that despite the gravity of the incident, the transport company had failed to release any official statement, send condolences to the victims’ families, or accept responsibility for their role in this unfortunate disaster.

According to them, the silence is not only an insult to the bereaved families, but also a blatant disregard for human lives and public safety.

“Your Excellency, this recklessness cannot go unpunished. Companies operating in Nigeria must be held accountable for their actions, especially when their negligence leads to the loss of innocent lives,” the students said.

The students urged the office of the President to institute independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding tragedy, ensuring that the transport company was held responsible for any violations of safety regulations that contributed to the accident.

If found guilty of negligence, NANS demands indefinitely closure of the company to prevent further loss of lives.

It added that the Ministry of Transportation should review its operational license and assess whether transport companies meet necessary safety standards required to continue operations in Nigeria.

The students stated that the affected students and their families deserve justice, urging the government to compel the Company to take full responsibility and compensate the families of the victims for their loss.

While calling on the Nigeria Police not to bury the case, NANS said it observed a pattern where cases of corporate negligence were swept under the carpet.

They urged the Inspector General of Police and the Commissioner, Osun State Police Command to ensure that the case was not abandoned or manipulated in favour of the transport company.

It warned that Nigerian students would not remain silent while innocent lives continue to be endangered by the irresponsibility of corporate entities.

“If swift action is not taken, NANS JCC Osun will mobilise students across the state and beyond for a mass action to demand justice.

“We trust in Your Excellency’s commitment to justice and public safety, and we look forward to your immediate intervention in this pressing matter”, they added.

calls for immediate release of revitalization fund, AEA, others

wants Tinubu to order AG to release approved funds

Due to the Federal government’s persistent failure to honor agreements over the release of the University revitalization fund, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) might have set a dateline of March ending within which it will call for a full-scale industrial action if the funds for the Universities revitalization project are not released.

The ultimatum may have become necessary following the discovery by the top echelon of the union that the government was playing politics with them over the release of over 200 Billion already approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the university revitalization scheme and Academic Earned Allowance, as well as other entitlements owed the body by the government.

A highly dependable source within ASUU, who spoke to our Correspondent under anonymity condition because he is not permitted to speak on behalf of the body, disclosed that the leadership of the union is deeply worried that despite its huge sacrifices and cooperation shown to the present Administration, the federal government has continued to play ‘hanky panky ‘with them over funding of universities, particularly, in implementing existing agreements.

According to the source, the union is mostly pained that despite its resolve to guarantee an uninterrupted academic calendar at the citadel of learning, the government is busy playing politics with them.

The source revealed that the union is tired of attending meetings with the Minister of Education where all negotiations and resolutions are not implemented.

It was also gathered that the government and ASUU team had recently reached a compromise where the sun of 150 billion naira was to be released as a revitalization fund,50 billion as Academic Earned Allowance, and another 30 billion respectively; again, the government reneged as monies are yet to be released as agreed.

The source further disclosed that the union resolved not to attend any meeting with the officials of the government unless President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ordered the Accountable General of the Federation to make the funds available.
“Look let me tell you, what ASUU wants is the immediate release of revitalization fund as well as AEA and all other of entitlement owed them by the government”

It was also learned that the union believes that both the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, and the Accountant General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Babatunde Ogunjimi, are hiding certain facts from the President and are not telling the President the truth as it concerns public university education.

The reliable source noted that the only way to avert stile action by the body is for the president to intervene and order for the immediate release of the funds to the institutions and also honor agreements entered into with the union.

It was also gathered that the OAGF is frustrating all attempts geared towards releasing the fund.

According to the source, officials of the Accountant General’s office insist on fresh presidential approval to release funds to the universities across the country.

The highly dependable source revealed that at a recent meeting between the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa the AG, and the President of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, as well as other officials of the government it was agreed that the N 300 Billion captured in the 2023 appropriation Act but was not released be rolled – over to this year.

It was gathered that a letter signed by the Minister of Education and addressed to the Accountant General requesting that the money be rolled over to 2025 has already been dispatched.

The Union was said to be represented at the meeting by its President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, who complained bitterly over the lack of political will by successive governments on the problem of the death of infrastructure and the welfare of members of the University community, including the knotty challenge of Earn allowance for members.

ASUU is also angered that the refusal of the government to release the university revitalization fund is gradually killing public universities, adding that infrastructure that could aid teaching and learning has become an eyesore in almost all the universities in Nigeria.

It would be recalled that the Federal Government had in 2009 reached an agreement with ASUU for the provision of 1.3 trillion on annual tranches of N220 billion over a period of 5 years as intervention funds for the revitalization of universities.

A review of the agreement was done in 2014. However, it is yet to be implemented, resulting in several industrial actions by ASUU, which distorts the academic calendar in the ivory tower.

Investigation revealed that efforts by the Federal Ministry of Education to prevent the strike action under the Tinubu-led government will might become history, if the Accountant General of the Federation keeps creating conditions that make the implementation of the agreements difficult, thereby, hampering the release of the University revitalization fund which was done based on needs assessments of the public universities.