The latest recognition of the Executive Secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund),Sonny Echono, by the University of Ilorin is an addition to a growing list of recognitions that have trailed his career in public service, especially his stewardship at Nigeria’s foremost tertiary education intervention agency.
 
The Award of Excellence by for his contributions to education and for distinguishing himself as an alumnus of the institution came from the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Wahab O. Egbewole, at a ceremony organised to celebrate distinguished alumni of the university.
 
Significantly, Echono also chaired the ceremony, which brought together members of the university community, prominent alumni and other stakeholders to celebrate graduates, whose services have enhanced the reputation of the institution. The award places him among a distinguished roll of UNILORIN alumni, who have made their mark in public administration, politics, academia, media, security and other areas of national life.
 
Last year, the university honoured former Kwara State Governor, Dr Abdulfatai Ahmed; Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari, media practitioner and scholar, Prof. Tunde Olusunle; THISDAY Newspapers and Arise Television Managing Director, Eniola Bello; former Deputy Director General, Nigerian Intelligence Agency, Ambassador Agev Apollos Dem; former Force Secretary and Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Rhoda Olofu and former Vice-Chancellor, Federal University, Lokoja, Prof. Yemi Akinwumi. Also honoured was the immediate past Registrar, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, who was the institution’s first graduate to become its Vice-Chancellor.
 
For Echono, the latest honour came at a time when his leadership at TETFund has become increasingly synonymous with moving the agency beyond the traditional responsibility of infrastructural development. Since assumption of office, Echono has presided over an intervention agency, which footprint cuts across all public tertiary institutions with emphasis on quick delivery of projects, accountability and commitment to addressing structural weaknesses in public tertiary institutions.
 
One of the most visible aspects of this has been the scale of infrastructure intervention. TETFund is set to unveil more than 400 intervention projects across 271 beneficiary institutions in 2026, with projects covering areas intended to improve teaching, learning, research and innovation.
 
Under Echono, the Fund has accelerated its Higher Education Book Development Intervention Project, tackling the persistent shortage of locally authored academic textbooks. In March 2026, the federal government unveiled 82 additional titles – 72 authored by Nigerian scholars and 10 secured by TETFund – bringing the number of academic textbooks published under the programme to 202.
 
The initiative reflects a philosophy that tertiary education development cannot be measured only by the number of buildings constructed. Through its partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Fund has supported the rollout of University Innovation Pods, designed to connect university talent with technology, research, entrepreneurship and industry. The national initiative began with the launch of an Artificial Intelligence UniPod at the University of Lagos.
 
At Nasarawa State University, the Mine-Tech UniPod, backed by a $2 million UNDP grant, represents another dimension of that strategy, linking higher education with mining technology, innovation and job creation. The initiative is expected to contribute to a wider innovation ecosystem across public universities.
 
In 2022, he was conferred with the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON). He also received a Fellowship of the Nigerian Association for Educational Administration and Planning alongside other recognitions such as the Medal of Honour from the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa and a Life Achievement Award from the African Housing Awards.
 
His list of honours expanded in subsequent years. In April 2024, the National Association of Academic Technologists presented him with an Award of Excellence for exemplary leadership in education, quality assurance and service to humanity. Three months later, Champion Newspapers named him Outstanding Public Servant of the Year for his role in the transformation of the tertiary education sector through TETFund interventions. Also, in October 2024, Echono received the Leadership Excellence Award in Education Development at the maiden Nigerian Patriotism Awards. The same year, the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union conferred on him the Legacy Award for Education Advancement and inducted him into its Hall of Fame.
 
He was also recognised by the Historical Society of Nigeria with an Associate Fellowship for his service to humanity and in April 2025, Vanguard Newspapers honoured him as its Education Icon 2024, citing his contribution to making Nigerian tertiary institutions more globally competitive. The recognitions continued into 2025, when TETFund and Echono received multiple SERVICOM honours for service delivery, with Echono personally recognised for his commitment to citizen-centred service.
 
Then came perhaps, his most recent individual recognition – Aljazirah Nigeria and London named him the 2025 Personality of the Year and Tertiary Education Transformation Champion in 2026. The organisation linked the honours to his reform-driven and transparent stewardship of TETFund. The University of Ilorin award only adds another dimension, recognition from an institution with which Echono is personally connected as an alumnus.
 
For him, the challenge is to ensure that the recognition remains matched by measurable outcomes, better-equipped institutions, stronger research, improved academic resources, more innovation and graduates that are better equipped to compete in a rapidly changing world.