The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has inaugurated a seven-member advisory committee to drive the establishment and effective use of multipurpose laboratories across tertiary institutions in the six geopolitical zones.
The Executive Secretary, TETFund, Sonny Echono, while inaugurating the committee in Abuja on Tuesday, gave them one month to provide strategic guidance on the design, equipment specification, deployment and sustainable management of the laboratories.
This, he said, was to ensure maximum impact.
Echono said the initiative aimed to strengthen research culture and infrastructure to transform Nigeria from a consumption-driven nation into a competitive producer in the global knowledge economy.
“Today’s event is part of the legacies of the present administration to build in this nation a research culture.
“It is also to support infrastructure that will help to transform our country from one of consumption to one that not only produces, but is able to compete with its peers across the globe,” he said.
Echono explained that the committee would review and update previously recommended equipment lists, considering rapid technological changes and risks of obsolescence.
According to him, the terms of reference include reviewing equipment proposals, recommending cost-effective procurement options and advising on adequacy of the management framework.
He added that the committee would propose measures for effective operationalisation, long-term sustainability, industry collaboration and possible revenue generation for the laboratories.
Echono noted that rapid technological disruption required constant review, stressing that sustainable economic growth depended on innovative, solution-driven research supported by adequate infrastructure.
He assured that the laboratories would have alternative power supply to guarantee uninterrupted, round-the-clock research activities.
Responding, Chris Maiyaki, the committee chairman and former Acting Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), thanked TETFund for the confidence in the committee and pledged timely delivery on the national assignment.
“We do not take for granted the confidence and the trust that you have bestowed on us to contribute our own quota in the successful execution of this very important national assignment of historic significance,” he said.
Maiyaki said members had studied the terms of reference and were prepared to meet expectations toward successful execution.
He added that modern, centralised laboratories would bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application in higher education and research.
