PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan indicated recently that his administration would establish more federal universities across the six geo-political zones of the country.These would be in addition to the nine federal universities that were established this year. There is no doubt that with the annual increase in the number of school leavers seeking admission into universities, the establishment of more will help in absorbing those seeking admission. According to statistics, only about 20 percent of those seeking admission into institutions of higher learning get admitted on an annual basis; last September, reports had it that, about 438, 000 qualified candidates failed to gain admission. The establishment of more federal universities will help to bring access to tertiary education and federal presence closer to the people. As the Minister of Education, Professor Ruqayyatu Rufa'i, said it serves to address the principle of equity in the presence of federal universities in various parts of the country.However, this latest announcement raises concern that, government wants to establish more universities, when none of the nine new federal universities earlier announced to be established has taken off. While the appointments of the pioneer Vice-Chancellors and Registrars have been made and some funds released, there are no physical structures on ground yet.We recall that the announcement of the nine universities was made on the eve of the last general elections. And this is the basis of the insinuation that the announcement was hastily made for political exigencies. But that should not be the case. The establishment and regular maintenance of universities anywhere in the world is a very serious commitment which requires adequate funds to ensure such tertiary institutions take off well and survive in order to achieve the cardinal objectives for which they were established. If the universities are to become 'the national and international centres of knowledge' then surely the profundity required to achieve this goal must be laid at the foundation. Quality must not be compromised. We would like to remind the President Goodluck Jonathan Administration that the devastating rot in the country's education sector still persists. There is decaying infrastructure, chronic lack of essential equipment and facilities, examination malpractices, inadequate funding, disruption in academic calendars, inadequate supply of qualified and experienced academic staff and unemployable graduates, amongst many other problems. Research capacity isn't growing as it should be. Government at various tiers must exercise great caution in how they establish educational institutions without providing the relevant support. The education sector as the engine room for production of the manpower for meaningful development must stay at the top priority of the development agenda, for the right reasons. Unless the approach to the sector is significantly altered, Nigeria cannot realise her vision of becoming one of the frontline 20 economically developed countries by 2020. It is in the interest of the country, that government must henceforth pay critical attention to the education sector. It must ensure sufficient and sustained funding for this all-important sector of Nigeria's economy.However, government should also urgently address the challenges facing the existing public universities to enable them serve their immediate communities, in particular and the country, in general as centres of academic excellence. All the existing public universities must be well-funded and given a new lease of life to ensure smooth operations and quality output. The lecturers must be well remunerated, trained and retrained to ensure maximum performance. Public universities should also be provided essential facilities, functional libraries/laboratories and the right environment to guarantee hitch-free teaching and learning processes.While we advocate the urgent need for federal and state governments to provide their universities more funds, Governing Councils of the universities can creatively embark on projects to broaden sources of funding. Partnership with the private sector also provides a veritable source to assist in establishment and funding of vital projects.
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