Education
Don Charges Govt On Funding Of Education Sector
A Professor of Administration of Higher Education, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt, Prof Ibekwe Robert-Okah, has called for adquate funding in the nation’s universities, so as to adequately maintain the standard of education that would in turn stimulate growth and development in Nigeria.
Ibekwe, while canvassing for massive investment in the education sector, also decried the culture of looting public funds to the detriment of the citizens by public officers.
The university lecturer made the assertion, while delivering his inaugural lecture at 38th Inaugural Lecture edition of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt titled, ‘Battered Tower And Tattered Gown: A National Dilemma,’ held at the university’s auditorium last Thursday, May 26, 2022.
He averred that quality of lecturers is determinant of the quality of education, saying: “No education system can rise above the quality of it’s teaching staffs.”
According to him, “Teachers are expected to live by example as education engineers as well as technicians, who are the soul of any educational system. The quality of teachers and their methods of teaching no doubt have declined in recent times in Nigerian universities due to lack of proper funding, poor teachers salary payment, lack of essential facilities such as books, journals, teaching aids as well as laboratory equipment. However, there is the problem of attrition and ‘brain drain.”
The Professor of described the University as a community of scholars and students engaged in a complex task where new knowledge, innovation, research and solutions could be provided for the overall development of the people.
He explained that the Nigerian university system has lost values due to negligence by the Federal Government, resulting to backwardness, underdevelopment, mediocrity and dangers, while comparing South Korea of about 52 million population to that of Nigeria which is over 250 million population, noted that there is a world power following their interest in research and quality education, rather than looting of public funds as practiced here in Nigeria.
The university Don however, enumerated other challenges facing the Nigerian university system to include: lack of quality lecturers, inadequate funding, high number of universities, failure of the FG to meet ASUU’s demands, carrying capacity, large number of members of the Senate, poverty level of citizens, among others.
He advised the government to adequately fund universities, improve the welfare package of the academic staff, and reduce the seven academic ranks in university to just three cadres, namely: “Lecturer, Senior lecturer and Professor,” adding that the measures would encourage academic research for innovations, development and dearth of professionals from the country to greener pastures.
Earlier, the Acting Vice-Chancellor, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Professor Okechuku Onuchuku, who was represented by the former Acting Vice-Chancellor of the Institution, Professor Joseph Kinanee, appreciated the efforts of the inaugural lecturer for his outstanding academic work, noting that the academic work would help the country grow in science and technology if the Federal government pays attention to it.
Onuchuku charged members of the institution as well as participants to take full advantage of the lecture, despite the challenges been confronted with in the country in order to improve on themselves to avoid brain drain.
He enjoined lecturers to align with students in such a manner that they can assist in the infrastructural development of the institution after graduation, instead of total dependant on government.
By: Susan Serekara-Nwikhana
Education
Parents Groan As Ebonyi Federal Varsity, Jacks School Fees To N1.5m

Parents and guardians of students studying various disciplines at the David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, Uburu, Ebonyi State have cried out over the jacking of tuition fees by management of the university and urged Minister of Education to urgently intervene on the matter.
A statement released by the Bursary Department of the institution indicates that Medicine and Surgery has increased of 42.86% from N1, 30, 000 in the 2023/2024 academic session to N1.5 Million in the new 2025/2026 session while Pharmacy and Nursing Sciences were both jacked up from N730, 000 in the 2023/2024 academic session to N1, 50, 000 in the new 2025/2026 academic session which represents approximately 43.84% increment.
Reacting to the new development, a business man who Chief Ozor Festus who claimed that his two children both gained admission to study Medicine and Surgery and Pharmacy, lamented that despite the brilliance of his children that made them gain admission on merit, it is now seeming like a curse as he cannot afford to cough out nearly N3M to process the entrance of his children for a Federal University he felt was funded by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“A lot of parents are grumbling over the school fees for new students because it is a Federal University and not a private university. Even in private universities, the fees are not this outrageous.”, he said
He said although the fees covered their accommodations, it was yet on a very high side. “We are begging the Minister for Education to come and help us bring this high fees down to where other parents like us can afford.
Education
‘Grant-Funded Success Stories In Girls’ Education Inspiring’

Sources have not only provided essential support for educational initiatives but have also catalysed a movement towards gender equality in education. The stories of success that emerge from these grant-funded programmes are not just statistics; they are narratives of resilience, ambition, and the profound impact that education can have on young girls and their communities.
By examining these success stories, we can better understand the multifaceted benefits of investing in girls’ education and the critical role that grants play in this endeavor. The importance of girls’ education cannot be overstated. Educated girls are more likely to become empowered women who contribute positively to their families and societies.
They tend to marry later, have fewer children, and invest more in their children’s education. However, despite these benefits, millions of girls around the world still face significant barriers to accessing quality education. Grant-funded programmes have emerged as a vital tool in addressing these challenges, providing resources that enable innovative solutions tailored to the unique needs of girls.
This article will explore various aspects of grant-funded success stories in girls’ education, highlighting how these initiatives are transforming lives and communities.
Organizations like the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) have implemented programs that directly target impoverished communities, ensuring that girls receive the support they need to attend school.
By removing financial obstacles, these grants empower families to invest in their daughters’ futures, fostering a culture where girls’ education is valued and prioritized. However, cultural norms and societal expectations often hinder girls from pursuing education.
Organizations like the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) have implemented programmes that directly target impoverished communities, ensuring that girls receive the support they need to attend school.
By removing financial obstacles, these grants empower families to invest in their daughters’ futures, fostering a culture where girls’ education is valued and prioritised. However, cultural norms and societal expectations often hinder girls from pursuing education.
Education grants can help challenge these stereotypes by funding awareness campaigns and community engagement initiatives that promote the importance of girls’ education. For example, the Malala Fund has supported grassroots organisations that work to change perceptions about girls’ roles in society.
Education
Implement Agreements Or Risk Industrial Crisis, ASUU Tells FG

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has asked the Federal Government to finalise all agreements entered with university teachers or risk an industrial crisis.
The lecturers decried what they described as the flip-flop disposition of successive governments towards collective bargaining, which has created an atmosphere of distrust and has taken extra efforts and energy on the part of the current Federal Government to dispel.
In a statement entitled ‘Act Now To Avert The Looming Crisis’ and signed by ASUU President, Prof. Chris Piwuna, the union said, “Nothing illustrates this antipathy better than the frustrated attempts to conclude the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN-ASUU Agreement, despite submission of a draft agreement by the Alhaji Yayale Ahmed committee to government since December 2024, eight clear months ago.
“Every major dispute ASUU has had with governments since 2012, when the 2009 Agreement was due for renegotiation, emanated from failure to respect the provisions of the signed document on conditions of service, funding, university autonomy and academic freedom, and
other matters, including the review of the laws governing the National Universities Commission (NUC) and Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
“Yet elite Nigerians are quick to blame the universities for ‘producing unemployable graduates’ and failure to initiate innovative research for addressing the country’s problems, our members feel forgotten, shamed and demoralised by past and present governments.
“ASUU has ceaselessly warned owners (government and visitors) of public universities – the Federal and State Governments – of the
Consequences of breeding a disempowered, dissatisfied, and disorientated intellectual workforce.
For the umpteenth time, ASUU invites all genuine patriots to prevail on Nigeria’s Federal and State Governments to address all lingering labour issues in the Nigerian University System to avert another looming industrial crisis.”
-
Nation2 days ago
Accolades, Fanfare As Ogbakor Ikwerre President General Celebrates 80th Birthday
-
News2 days ago
Stop politicising Niger Delta’s plight over personal interest, Ex-militant warns Ijaw youths
-
News2 days ago
Keep faith with Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda – NOA begs Nigerians
-
Niger Delta3 days ago
Bayelsa Tasks Security Agencies On Vigilance Over Waring Communities
-
Featured2 days ago
Rivers LG Poll: APC Wins 20 chairmanship seats, PDP Clears Three
-
News2 days ago
Cleric Condemns Increasing Theft in God’s House
-
News2 days ago
Okpebholo, Edo Speaker mourns ex-IGP, Arase
-
News2 days ago
Ojulari: CNPP, civil society groups demand judicial probe into NNPCL