The Federal Government has issued a 30-day ultimatum to all tertiary institutions across the country to submit detailed reports on unutilised intervention funds received from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, gave the directive on Thursday during a meeting with vice-chancellors, rectors, and provosts of federal and state-owned institutions in Abuja.
Alausa, who expressed dissatisfaction over the large sums of TETFund allocations left unspent, said the development had significantly hindered infrastructural growth and academic advancement in the nation’s higher institutions.
“Every institution must provide reconciled reports of all unutilised TETFund allocations within 30 days for verification. Funds not properly accounted for or justified may be reallocated to priority projects,” the minister warned.
He further cautioned that institutions that fail to comply or delay project execution would face sanctions, adding that the era of carrying over unspent allocations without strong justification was over.
To enhance transparency, Alausa announced that the government would begin quarterly compliance reviews and introduce a public dashboard displaying details of TETFund disbursement and utilisation.
“Procurement processes must align with approved interventions. Heads of institutions must take responsibility for ensuring prompt execution of approved projects. TETFund will enforce strict compliance moving forward,” he stated.
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He also revealed plans for capacity-building programmes aimed at improving project management and reporting systems across tertiary institutions.
The directive follows repeated concerns raised by TETFund over the growing number of unaccessed and unutilised funds by universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
Earlier in July 2025, the agency threatened to delist defaulting institutions and redirect their funds to schools with a track record of timely utilisation.
Under the 2025 intervention cycle, TETFund approved ₦1.6 trillion for Nigerian tertiary institutions, covering key areas such as campus security, direct interventions, and healthcare infrastructure.