By Martin Odiete

Executive Secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) Prof. Suleiman Bogoro has charged the Technical Advisory Committee on Impact Assessment, TACIA to come with Recommendations that would make the Fund improve on its services.

He declared this while inaugurating the committee on Wednesday in Abuja. He charged them to come up with recommendations that would particularly address areas of need in the Nations educational sector while also calling on them to undertake and produce a strategic plan for the fund.

“We at TETFund are determined to maintain our status, one of the most visible, impactful and relevant intervention agencies that has become a model in Africa.

“We have some of the very best experts in this team. They have operated, known the theory of impact assessment and applied this to developmental progress.

“The TACIA has been carefully picked to reflect some of the best experts in development work, research, and scholarship.

“We hope that with further consultative, some policies may emerge and impact on the intervention.

“It is the responsibility of all to undertake a very serious assignment for nation building,” he said.

The executive secretary disclosed that the Board of Trustees of the fund had agreed that in subsequent budget, more fund would be committed into research.

Bogoro further called on TACIA to help identify areas that needed improvement to enable the fund work upon those areas.

Responding, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, National President, Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities (ASUU) noted that ASUU shared the same vision with TETFund while promising to do its best for the country’s educational system.

“ASUU is pleased to be part of the project. The exercise is not only going to energise TETFund but will make TETFund achieve its target.

“Our expectation is that the core value that throws ASUU to this task – objectivity, research and interest of the nation will be achieved,” he said.

The Executive Secretary maintained that part of their terms of reference includes; Carry out impact assessment of TETFund intervention from 1999 to 2010. They also expected to determine the level of implementation of ETF/TETFund mandates and effectiveness.

They are also to determine the achievement, challenges and weaknesses recorded and observed in the course of implementation of existing projects, programmes and intervention lines of the fund.

The committee is, however, expected to submit a report on or before November 29.