By Felix Khanoba
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has called on universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education across Nigeria to accelerate the integration of technology in teaching, research, and administration, warning that billions of naira invested in ICT infrastructure risk being wasted through underutilisation.
TETFund’s Executive Secretary, Arc. Sonny Echono, made the appeal on Monday in Abuja while speaking at a two-day workshop on the adoption of Blackboard and the Tertiary Education, Research, Applications and Services (TERAS) platform. The event brought together registrars, bursars, ICT directors, academic planners, and repository managers from beneficiary institutions.
Echono expressed concern that, despite early investments in digital learning platforms, many institutions remain slow to adopt ICT solutions.
He stressed that Nigeria’s fast-growing population and shortage of classrooms make technology the only practical route to expanding access to quality education.
“We are no longer confined to the four walls of classrooms. With just an android phone or a device, students should be able to access content, participate in learning, and acquire skills. There is no alternative to technology if we must prepare our youths for the opportunities ahead,” Echono said.
He criticised institutions that still send hardcopy requests to TETFund in defiance of directives for e-submissions and described many universities’ websites as “embarrassingly outdated.” Robust and regularly updated online platforms, he said, should now be a basic standard.
Echono recalled how TETFund’s partnership with states, the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), and radio stations during the COVID-19 lockdown enabled WAEC syllabus-based broadcasts, resulting in one of Nigeria’s strongest WAEC performances. He also warned that Nigeria’s global ranking — 189th overall and 25th in Africa in education competitiveness — highlights the urgent need to leverage ICT, as smaller nations like Rwanda and Mauritius have successfully done.
“Government has done its part by providing the infrastructure. But when equipment is procured and platforms created and they are not being used, that is the very definition of waste,” he said.
He urged institutional leaders to prioritise TERAS adoption among staff and students, noting that future TETFund allocations would increasingly favour ICT investment over physical infrastructure. Echono further linked Nigeria’s economic stagnation to its failure to embrace technology in critical sectors such as oil, agriculture, and manufacturing, contrasting this with China’s rapid transformation through deliberate investment in knowledge and innovation.
“We can do the same if we decide to do the right thing. The right thing starts with our education system. The building block of every nation is knowledge,” Echono added.
He called on schools to update their websites with comprehensive data and ensure full onboarding of users onto TERAS.
Also speaking, TETFund’s Director of ICT, Mr. Joseph Odo, explained that the workshop’s interactive sessions aim to strengthen knowledge of the Fund’s digital platforms and foster collaboration among participating institutions.
“This is part of our engagements with key stakeholders, registrars, librarians, ICT directors, repository managers, and academic planners, to ensure that everyone understands the interventions we are providing. The world is moving fast technology-wise, and we cannot afford to be left behind,” Odo said.
He added that the sessions — which will be held across all six geopolitical zones — are designed to consolidate the use of TETFund-supported platforms that improve teaching, research, and institutional planning. According to him, TERAS is evolving into “an educational lifestyle” serving students, faculty, administrators, and government planners alike.
