The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance transparency and accountability in education funding.
The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Dr Ogbonnaya Orji, stated this on Monday in Abuja at the ceremony between NEITI and TETFund,
Orji disclosed that TETFund received approximately N1.024 trillion in revenue from education taxes over a five-year period.
Referencing the NEITI industry reports on the Nigerian extractive sector, Orji noted that the MoU focused on information and data sharing, ensuring that NEITI’s verified data would inform TETFund’s strategic planning, revenue forecasting, and accountability framework.
“Under the MoU, NEITI will work with TETFund to ensure timely and prompt remittances through early deployment of evidence-based data.
”NEITI will also provide real-time information on revenue accruals due to TETFund to guarantee transparency and support the Fund in tracking remittances and utilisation.
”Our joint effort will uplift educational institutions, enhance access to scholarships, and strengthen the research ecosystem across our public tertiary institutions.
”The support would enhance TETFund’s capacity to track what was due, what had been paid, and what was yet to be remitted, thereby promoting accountability and enabling proactive financial planning in the education sector, Orji said.
On the accruals to TETFund from education taxes in the extractive sector, a breakdown of the revenues from the NEITI’s industry audit reports showed that, in 2022, the total revenue accruals to TETFund stood at N322.99 billion.
In 2023, the figure rose significantly to N571.01 billion, the highest annual inflow to date. Between 2019 and 2021, NEITI audit data showed that total accruals to TETFund amounted to N644.19 billion, of which N624.32 billion was disbursed.
”These disbursements underscored the pivotal role of the extractive sector in financing Nigeria’s tertiary education.
“Today’s MoU connects the source and the application of public revenues. NEITI tracks and verifies what is paid.
”TETFund ensures that what is received is invested for impact. Together, we are creating a value chain of accountabilityfrom extraction to education,” the Executive Secretary maintained.
The Executive Secretary stressed that over N1.024 trillion accrued to TETFund in just five years must be fully accounted for, efficiently deployed, and transparently tracked.
He added that the fund must translate to modern libraries, functional laboratories, revitalised lecture halls, and cutting-edge research that meets the challenges of the 21st century.
“With this MoU, NEITI and TETFund commit to a future of joint accountability, open data exchange, and measurable impact.
He added,”This is not just a partnership between two institutions—it is a covenant with the Nigerian people. A promise to ensure that Nigeria’s natural resource wealth truly works for every citizen, especially through education. ”
The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Sonny Echono, in his welcome remarks, stated that the MoU signing ceremony is a landmark event in the series of engagements between TETFund and NEITI.
Echono explained that the MoU will enable TETFund and NEITI to explore various avenues for ensuring accountability in the areas of tax accruals on education tax, which are duly remitted.
He noted that this is to enable TETFund to recover such funds and boost revenue for education development, which promotes the agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
“The MoU will also define a framework that will enable us get accurate, credible, and up-to-date data that will culminate into a very firm agreement between the two agencies.
”Other key components of the MoU include improvement of revenue and efficiency in its collection,” the Executive Secretary of TETFund reiterated.
The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education, Abel Enitan, described the MoU signing as a welcome development and a foundation for sustainable growth in the education sector.
Enitan emphasised the ministry’s support, highlighting the importance of transparency and NEITI’s vital role not just in signing but also in implementing the agreement.
He called for an urgent need to recover the unremitted taxes of extractive companies for education development, which will impact not only the present generation but also future generations.
