How TETFund spent N100b on ICT in 2 years

According to Prof. Suleiman Bogoro, Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, the agency spent N100 billion on Information Communication Technology, ICT in higher institutions over the last two years.

Bogoro said this in Abuja on Wednesday, while receiving the CISCO Strategic Partnership Award on behalf of TETFund. He said that the development of ICT is very important to enable Nigeria to catch up with the rest of the world.

"This award is symbolic; it means a lot to us as an intervention agency; CISCO is an international brand in ICT because of its capacity.

"The award shows that what we are doing in the education sector is being recognised outside the shores of the country.

"We are partnering with our regulatory agencies — National Universities Commission, NUC, National Board for Technical Education, NBTE, and National Commission for Colleges of Education, in deploying ICT to teaching and learning,’’ he said.

In his remarks, CISCO’s Regional Corporate Affairs Manager for Africa, Mr Alfie Hamid said that Nigeria must keep pace with the movement of the `smart world’.

He stressed that Nigeria’s educational system must catch up with technology, adding that CISCO was partnering African governments to see how they could bridge the ever widening technology gap.

"We have been around since 2008 but for the very first time in the history of Nigeria, we have a partner in TETFund and in one year we have been able to take CISCO programme to 11 institutions.

"It is ground breaking not only for Nigeria, but for the whole of Africa.

"It is an amazing achievement and the partnership will impact on 5,000 students each year.

"It will help to take Nigeria to a stage where it will be able to compete in the international arena,’’ he said.

He identified the benefitting institutions as University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Delta State University, Anambra State University, Federal Polytechnic, Nekede and College of Education, Warri. Others are Kebbi State University of Science and Technology, Bauchi State University, Sokoto State Polytechnic, Federal Polytechnic,Yola and Esa-Oke Polytechnic, Osun State.

Hamid noted that with the current instability in crude oil market, there was a need to diversify the economy by investing in skills.

He said that the award was to reward of TETFund's strategic partnership and contribution to ICT growth in higher institutions in the country.

Cisco is an American ICT firm specializing in the manufacture, sales and design of networking equipment. It also offers  certification, training, and testing programmes to ICT professionals.