By Felix Khanoba
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has expressed hope that education tax will in the not distant future hit 3percent to enable it shore up its various interventions in the nation’s higher education institutions.
Executive Secretary of the Fund, Arc. Sonny Echono, who made this known in Abuja during a courtesy visit to his office by Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State, commended President Muhammadu Buhari’s massive support for the education sector.
He said one of the President’s special support for education was evident in the recent approval of an upward review of the Education Tax from 2percent to 2.5percent,which will enable TETFund to cope with its increasing demands.
While expressing optimism that the Education Tax would likely increase to 3percent as the government, Echono said such a move would go into expanding the frontiers of education and the way it is structured in the country.
“The increased tax would facilitate the implementation of more developmental projects in the education sector,” he said.
Speaking further, the TETFund boss charged tertiary education institutions in Nigeria to produce entrepreneurs and not just graduates.
According to the Benue State- Echono, investments in creating entrepreneurs would go a long way to curbing the menace of unemployment and consequently tackle the socio-economic problems prevalent in the country.
Echono stated that one of his primary goals is to make tertiary institutions a place to produce entrepreneurs, noting that with the support of the federal government, TETFund plans to reinforce huge investments in the recently established 13 universities to fast track their rate of progress with a view to achieving the purpose of establishing them.
The Executive Secretary expressed appreciation at the show of support from Governor Lalong, even as he pledged continued commitment to the development of tertiary education in the state.
Earlier in his remark ,Governor Lalong lauded TETFund for the numerous iconic projects dotting the tertiary institutions in zPlateau State, saying the agency has become a lifeline for the schools.
Governor Lalong sought the continuity of the good work by the Fund and expressed appreciation for its contribution to the development of education in the state and the northern region of Nigeria at large.
The Governor expressed optimism that Echono,who he described as an educationist, with a good track record as Permanent Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education, would keep up the good work of his predecessor, Prof. Suleiman Bogoro.
