The Niger State House of Assembly has urged the state government to protect and save the state’s tertiary institutions from closure.
Abdullahi Bawa, Speaker of the House, made the call on Monday during the screening proposals for the 2022 budget for Ministries, Agencies, and Departments (MDAs) in Minna.
He expressed concern that many tertiary institutions in the state were struggling to survive due to insufficient funding to run them and carry out projects.
“Some of our tertiary institutions are already collapsing, and this will have a negative impact on the state.”
“As a result, we must all work together to ensure the long-term viability of our tertiary institutions,” he said.
Similarly, Mr Ahmad Bello, member representing Agwara Constituency, stated that the poor performance of the state’s tertiary institutions was due to insufficient funding, emphasizing the need for immediate intervention.
“We can’t keep approving budgets and then see and hear zero performance; we need to look at previous performance before approving a new budget,” he said.
Mr Mohammed Haruna, Member for Bida II, stated that the committee would submit a report to the state government in order to allow tertiary institutions to use the resources they generated.
Earlier in his presentation, Dr Musa Sadiq, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tertiary Education, stated that the majority of Niger‘s tertiary institutions performed poorly due to insufficient funding.
Prof. Yakubu Auna, Chairman of Tertiary Institutions and Provost of College of Education, Minna, also requested that the committee assist in facilitating the remittance of 5% of tertiary institutions’ revenue to the state board of internal revenue.
He stated that such remittances would supplement state funding for the institutions’ sustenance.