The National Universities Commission (NUC) has disclosed that it has received €3 million as the first instalment of the €40 million loan obtained from the French Development Agency to drive Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) initiatives across 10 chosen universities.
The announcement was made by the commission’s Executive Secretary, Prof. Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, during the inaugural sitting of the 13th NUC Board at its headquarters in Abuja.
The shortlisted institutions include the University of Calabar (UniCal), University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), University of Ibadan (UI), Federal University of Technology (FUT) Minna, and the University of Maiduguri (UniMaid).
Others listed are Bayero University Kano (BUK), Modibbo Adama University (MAU) Yola, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Ile-Ife, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, and the University of Jos (UniJos).
Ribadu said that over the past year, the Commission had advanced several programmes aimed at improving research output, boosting entrepreneurship, and enhancing digital capacity and skills development in Nigerian universities.
He said: “We have secured €40 million loan from the French Development Agency for the ICT Blueprint Project in 10 selected universities. We have strengthened – only yesterday, the Director confirmed to me that the first tranche of €3 million has been deposited in our Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) account to kick-start the process.”
He added that the Commission had improved its internal financial processes, expanded university access through new private university licences, and approved additional academic programmes and units.
“We have also supported the take-off of publicly funded universities, expanded open and distance learning centers, and continued system-wide quality assurance exercises. Currently, the 2025 Accreditation Exercise is ongoing.
“These priorities continue to form the foundation of the Commission’s direction, and I am seeking your support in advancing them.”
Ribadu assured board members of the Commission’s full collaboration and described the management as eager to draw from their collective experience.
“We will rely on your wisdom to guide us as we carry out our duties. I am confident that your collective experience will strengthen the Commission’s capacity to guide the Nigerian university system at a time when higher education continues to evolve.”
“We also look forward to using your networks to help advance projects and partnerships that will benefit the Commission and the entire university system,” he added.
Board outlines priorities for reform
The Chairman of the 13th NUC Board, Emeritus Professor Oluremi Raphael Aina, expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his sustained backing of the tertiary education sector.
He noted that the board was assuming responsibility at a period of transformation in global higher education, marked by increasing standards and heightened expectations.
Aina pointed out five core principles that would shape the board’s agenda, including performance review, stronger global ranking, digital skills, research growth, and broad institutional reforms.
He said: “As we settle into this assignment, but permit me to present what I call five pillars that I believe will help guide our stewardship.
“One, evaluation of NUC performance. We must examine in detail the Act that buffered and laid the foundation for the NUC. We also need to be conversant with the various amendments to the act, its vision and mission, guiding principles and ethics.
“Then we must study the Commission’s operational challenges and landmark achievements. Going forward, we should compare ourselves against global standards, not sentiments, not history, and where we fall short, how we fall short, and why we must adjust boldly.”
He continued: “Two: aligning with the renewed hope agenda of the present administration, the president has made education a pillar of national rebirth with the establishment of the fund and other initiatives.
“The signal sent to the world is that Nigeria is ready to reset and rebuild. Through our assignment, we must lead other key stakeholders in the higher education sector in pragmatically resolving the naughty and nagging agitation of the academic staff union and other university unions.
“Advancements must also be made to enhance digital literacy and especially the use of artificial intelligence, AI, as tools to strategically reposition the universities nationally and internationally. Overall, it will also be a priority for the 13th board to work with the management for radical improvements in both the global and webometric ranking of our universities.”
“Three: identifying and dismantling obstacles to university quality. Governance deficiencies, fund constraints, research stagnation, et cetera, must no longer be accepted as normal. Our duty is to reform and make progress, not to manage decline.
“Four, reviewing existing funding and exploring new channels for sustainable funding. Nigerian universities cannot thrive on ingenuity alone. The board must intensify the research for alternative funding sources. Strengthen utilization and explore emerging and local opportunities.
“And five, investing in the welfare and capacity of NUC staff and regulatory infrastructure. The system cannot overperform its operators. Credible accreditation and monitoring require strengthened conditions of service and protected regulatory independence.”
Aina added that the board intends to make technology central to its operations.
“We will seek to leverage technology to ease our burden through adoption of digital platforms for the advancement of our collective objectives. And I have a charge for the board. This board, in whom I am well-pleased, carries with it the weight of expectations and aspirations of the Nigerian people,” he said.
