The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has said it had collected N1.5 trillion as Education Tax son far this year.
The fund’s Executive Secretary, Sonny Echono, who announced this at a stakeholders’ engagement yesterday in Abuja, said the amount was a record-breaking achievement.
Echono said the increase was made possible by the approval of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to increase the tax from 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent last year.
The TETFund boss explained that the revenue generated through the education tax plays a significant role in maintaining and improving infrastructure at the nation’s institutions, enhancing academic programmes, and promoting accessibility for students from diverse backgrounds.
He said: “The increase last year, in the Education Tax from 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent – authorised by the Commander-in-Chief, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, represents a significant stride for TETFund.
This change, culminating in a record-breaking Education Tax collection of approximately N1.5 trillion so far this year, reinforces the government’s dedication to strengthening Nigeria’s educational framework.
“We now enter the 2025 budget cycle with a stronger foundation, one that allows us to enhance our impact across the country’s tertiary institutions.
“At this juncture, the fund wishes to extend our appreciation to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), which has been our able and reliable partner from inception to date, for its steadfastness and diligence in ensuring the timely and transparent collection of funding accrued from the Education Tax in our beloved nation to propel our tertiary institutions towards global recognition and excellence.”
Echono said this year has been eventful for the agency with several activities, including the inauguration of the much-awaited Board of Trustees (BoT), chaired by former Katsina State Governor Aminu Masari, who, with his board members, have been steering the agency in the right direction for sustained impact.
President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, called for the utilisation of the backlog of unspent funds allocated to tertiary education.
The ASUU president warned that the continued stagnation of such resources could hinder the growth and development of the sector.
He urged university leaders to fight for themselves and not rely on others to negotiate their future.
Osodeke warned that the proposed tax changes to TETFund could drastically affect Nigerian universities’ funding, emphasising the need to ensure these bills don’t pass if we truly care about our education system.
He said: “I want to say that we have a lot of problems. If we don’t work hard, we cannot be sitting here in the next six years; nobody will be here in the next six years.
“Whether we will be here or not in the next six years will depend on the National Assembly. I am so happy the Senate and the House of Representatives are here. The information available to us as a union is that there are two sets of Bills in the National Assembly.
“One from the Executive and one from the Legislature; all concerning TETFund. TETFund is just there. And the one from the Executive arm of government indicates a page. Out of 260 tax reviews, it is just a page in it. I am very sure the President will not have the details to look at that when he is reading.
(Thenation)
