By targeting Centre of Excellence style of investments and supporting publication of manuscripts and journals, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), has greatly contributed to building strong institutions capable of conducting meaningful researches and producing competent graduates. These are long-term bets and the Fund under the leadership of Sonny Echono as the Executive Secretary, has made them central to its identity.
Another feat by the Fund was a visible coordination role. TETFund under Echono has increasingly positioned itself as a convener of institutional leadership, unions, professional bodies and international partners. This has aided in bringing diverse voices into intervention designs, reduced duplications, encouraged complementary investments and increased the culture of project maintenance long after construction. The Fund’s public engagements and stakeholders’ workshops in the outgone year also demonstrated this proactive posture.
Without doubt, the Executive Secretary has equally been attentive to the optics and accountability mechanisms that sustain public trust by publishing allocations, hosting interactive sessions and holding commissioning events, where outcomes can be inspected. The implication is that when institutions, civil society and the media see where funds are channeled and how priorities are decided, the entire ecosystem becomes better at self-correction and citizens’ confidence in public institutions gradually restored.
On impact, there are clear wins to point to – increased investment in Information Communication Technology (ICT) and library development has helped students access global knowledge; expanded conference attendance and research funding, lifted institutional profiles. Also, targeting physical infrastructure, especially decaying lecture halls and students’ accommodation, addressed one of the most visible pain points.
Importantly, TETFund’s 2025 funding matrix indicated a pragmatic mix of high-impact, short-term deliverables (hostels, labs) and long-term capability building (scholarships, research grants). This balance is precisely what tertiary systems require to recover lost grounds and innovatively prepare for future demands.
The successful commissioning of a 244-bed female hostel at Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, Rivers State is a testament to the Fund’s sustained commitment to improving students’ welfare and addressing accommodation challenges in public tertiary institutions across the country.
The newly commissioned ultra-modern facility was designed to provide a safe, comfortable and conducive living environment for female students, thereby enhancing their academic experience and overall well-being. Equipped with modern amenities and built to high structural standards, the hostel is expected to significantly reduce the pressure on off-campus housing, which often exposes students to security risks and high rental costs.
Beyond its immediate impact on students, the project reflected TETFund’s broader mandate of strengthening infrastructure development in tertiary institutions to support quality education. By prioritising projects that directly affect learning conditions and campus life, the Fund continues to play a critical role in promoting gender-sensitive policies, improving institutional capacity and fostering an environment that enables students to thrive academically and socially.
Rector of the polytechnic, Dr Ledum Gwarah, captured the mood of stakeholders when he described the project as a timely and transformative intervention that addressed a long-standing accommodation challenge faced by female students of the institution. He noted that the hostel symbolised more than a physical structure but a renewed sense of hope, dignity and security for students, who have endured years of inadequate housing facilities.
According to him, the completion of the hostel represented a major boost to students’ welfare and academic stability as access to safe and decent accommodation directly influences learning outcomes. He explained that many students had previously been forced to seek expensive and often unsafe off-campus housing, a situation that exposed them to avoidable risks and distractions.
Gwarah therefore, expressed profound appreciation to TETFund for its consistent support to the polytechnic, describing the intervention as evidence of the Fund’s responsiveness to the real needs of tertiary institutions. He assured stakeholders that the school management will ensure a proper utilisation and maintenance of the facility to maximise its long-term benefits. He also reaffirmed the institution’s commitment to accountability, transparency and the judicious use of public funds, adding that continued collaboration with TETFund and other stakeholders will accelerate infrastructural development and enhance the overall quality of education at the polytechnic.
Without doubt, TETFund’s 2025 performance under the leadership of Arc Echono reflected a confident and deliberate turnaround that goes beyond brick-and-mortar achievements. The Fund has demonstrated a clearer sense of purpose, aligning infrastructure delivery with research development, human capacity building and institutional coordination. This holistic approach suggested an organisation increasingly conscious of its role not just as a funding agency but also, a strategic driver of tertiary education reform in Nigeria.
By balancing immediate, visible interventions with long-term system-building initiatives, TETFund under Echono has helped stabilise institutions, especially those grappling with years of underinvestment while also nudging them towards innovations and competitiveness.
Surely, Echono’s stewardship in 2025 has repositioned TETFund as a more transparent, collaborative and impact-driven institution. Although, challenges in Nigeria’s tertiary education system remained significant, the Fund’s evolving posture offers a credible model for how public resources can be deployed with intention, accountability and measurable outcomes and where strategic leadership translates public trust into tangible, lasting gains for students, institutions and the country at large.
