The Federal Government has directed tertiary institutions across the country to account for all unspent Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) allocations within 30 days or risk sanctions, including the reallocation of idle funds to other institutions.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, issued the directive on Thursday during a meeting with heads of universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education in Abuja.
Alausa said the ministry was concerned about the growing volume of funds yet to be utilised by beneficiary institutions despite pressing infrastructure and research needs in the sector. He described the situation as “a dilemma that stalls development,” blaming administrative delays and weak project execution for the backlog.
“Institutional heads must submit reconciled reports of all unutilised funds within 30 days for joint verification. Unused allocations may be redirected to priority projects, and carrying them over without strong justification will no longer be permitted,” the minister stated.
He added that procurement processes must align with approved interventions, while approvals should be fast-tracked to prevent further delays. To strengthen accountability, Alausa announced new capacity-building and mentorship programmes for project management and compliance officers. Quarterly reviews will monitor implementation, and erring institutions will face sanctions.
The minister also disclosed plans for a public transparency dashboard to display TETFund disbursement and utilisation data, as well as mandatory publication of project progress reports by institutions.
“TETFund must lead with professionalism and enforce compliance. Institutional heads should drive urgency and accountability, while bursars, procurement officers, and project coordinators must plan and report diligently,” he said.
The directive follows repeated concerns by TETFund over unutilised allocations. In July, the Fund warned that institutions failing to access and spend approved funds would be delisted, with their allocations diverted to more compliant schools.
Though TETFund has not disclosed the total amount of idle funds, the House of Representatives Committee on TETFund reported in August 2024 that about ₦500 billion remained unspent in the Central Bank of Nigeria. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) also claimed during a recent meeting in Abuja that the figure had risen to over ₦600 billion.
Former ASUU President and NEC member, Prof. Victor Osodeke, called for sanctions against heads of institutions who fail to deploy intervention funds, warning that such negligence undermines TETFund’s mission to enhance teaching, learning, and research infrastructure.
“There’s a huge sum of money belonging to institutions that has not been utilised, some for over a decade,” Osodeke said. “Public funds cannot remain idle while our campuses face infrastructural decay.”
In 2025, TETFund allocated ₦1.6 trillion to tertiary institutions across Nigeria, focusing on direct interventions, healthcare, and campus security projects.
