•Women Affairs allocation rises to N154.3 billion

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has revealed plans to allocate N2.52 billion to each university under its 2026 intervention cycle, with polytechnics set to receive N1.871 billion each, while colleges of education will get N2.056 billion apiece.

This comes as the Fund has introduced a new intervention line in the 2026 yearly direct intervention, known as the Nigerian Research and Education Network (NgREN).

Executive Secretary of TETFund, Sonny Echono, disclosed this in Abuja yesterday during the 2026 Stakeholders’ Workshop, where allocation letters for the 2026 intervention were also distributed.

Echono said the total direct disbursement accounts for approximately 90.75 per cent of the funds, with yearly direct disbursements at 50 per cent and special direct disbursements at 43.75 per cent.

According to him, under yearly direct disbursements, 271 beneficiary institutions will receive allocations as follows: “All universities, regardless of age, size, or enrolment, will receive N2,525,932,228.02 per university, all polytechnics will receive N1,871,059,920.53 each, and all colleges of education will receive N2,056,527,973.04 each.”

Echono said: “These funds are meant to strengthen critical physical infrastructure, enhance academic programmes, boost research and innovation, and drive overall transformation in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.”

MEANWHILE, the Federal Government has nearly doubled the budgetary allocation to the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs in the 2026 Appropriation Bill, raising it from N78.5 billion in 2025 to N154.3 billion in 2026, a 97 per cent increase.

A breakdown of the budget shows that the ministry will receive a total of N154,315,760,358, with N2.66 billion earmarked for personnel costs, N1.25 billion for overheads, and a significant N150.39 billion allocated to capital expenditure, signalling a renewed focus on programmes and projects targeted at women and girls.

The sharp increase marks one of the most substantial boosts the ministry has received in recent years, raising expectations among gender advocates and civil society organisations for tangible improvements in women’s welfare, protection, and economic empowerment.

As of press time, the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, had yet to formally comment on the new allocation. Reacting to the development, National President of the Women in Politics Forum (WiPF), Ebere Ifendu, welcomed the increase but cautioned that funding alone would not guarantee impact without effective release and utilisation.