Funding has remained the most contentious issue as far as education and its delivery is concerned. While many had argued that money does not guarantee quality education, another school of thought is of the opinion that it will at least provide quantitative education. But when institutions deliberately refuse to access money for educational development, the question that begs for answer becomes confusing.

This is because for those who have been following the happenings in the Nigerian education sector, inadequate funding remains one of the bane in the quest to eradicate illiteracy as well give quality education to the citizenry. No wonder the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will always get public sympathy for its industrial action because Nigerians believe the Federal Government is not serious about providing financial muscle needed to transform the education sector to that which can help the development quest of Nigeria as a country.

However, reports have it that government at all level is poised to change that. But because corruption starts from the top, the problem of the education sector remains with us notwithstanding how much is pumped into the sector.

Or what can explain the pass mark which our National Assembly doles out to the sector every year during it's over sight function visits only for the same lawmakers to start shouting on the near collapsed education system the very next year? This is not the point for discussion here.

The soup on the plate for Nigerians to taste and speak on its suitability is that billions of naira had been spent on the education sector with almost nothing tangible to show for it.

Many stakeholders have actually called for a probe of the education sector, at least from 1999 till date.

It is very unfortunate that Academic Staff Union Universities (ASUU), Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) are quick to draw public sympathy for their welfare which is a welcome development but fail to throw such weight behind accountability in the system.

Though the unions are not under attack or being accused of corruption, some of its members are responsible for the shocking state of the nation's education system. The Principals of secondary schools as well as Head-Teachers primary schools are not left out.

The simple reason remain that no matter how bad the Federal Government may be funding the education sector, coupled with the funds from donor agencies, state governments and others, the nation's education environment should be better than what it is today if the operators are genuine in their professed desire to run the schools corrupt-free! If not corruption, how can one explain the inability of the managers of the education sector from State Ministries of Education to State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEBs), even to Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education as well as some Inter-University Centers to access billions of naira meant for developmental intervention from the Education Trust Fund (ETF)?

The ETF as intervention agency of government is meant to disburse the Education Tax (ET) collected annually for the development of the education system especially in the areas of equipment and infrastructure as well as staff development.

It was worrisome when it had to take the publication of names of institutions, States Ministry of Education and others to move them to come forward and access the money allocated to them for intervention projects up till 2008.

As at the time when the names of the defaulters went public over N23bilion was idling away in the ETF account with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) while the sector groan under sympathetic years of steady decay.

This pointer is necessary because the ETF management as well as its Board members had taken a pain of holding series of workshop for beneficiaries of its 2009 intervention with a clear promise that the 2010 intervention allocations will be announced before the end of the first quarter of next year.

For example, putting the N23.6billion unaccessed funds aside, the ETF disclosed that a over N20 billion is available as allocation to Universities, Polytechnics, Colleges of Education, State Ministries of Education, SUBEBS, the 774 Local Government Education Authorities as well as the six area councils in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

A recap of the words and disclosures of the Executive Secretary of ETF, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu was that there will be about N7.23billion for the 57 public universities in the country for 2009 ETF interventions.

Prof. Yakubu who spoke at the ETF 2009 Annual Strategic Planning Workshops for Federal, States Universities and Inter-University Centers, stated that the global economic recession notwithstanding, each of the universities will be getting the same amount of N127million each which they got in the 2008 allocation.

Yakubu said the allocation was coming late in the year but that the management of ETF had worked towards ensuring that the factors for that are removed, stating that the allocation for next year will be announced within the first quarter.

Stating that the allocation is aimed at improving on teaching and learning facilities in the nation's tertiary institutions, the ETF boss gave a breakdown of the allocation to show that each university is being given opportunity to develop equally.

In the breakdown, Yakubu said a total of N127 million was allocated to each of the 57 public universities-Federal and States-on equality basis, explaining that out of the N127 million, N57 million was allocated for projects, including new construction, procurement of construction materials, procurement of classroom furniture, computers among others, while N10 million would be for Library development.

In line with the vision of the ETF to encourage manpower development, N50 million was earmarked for academic staff training and development. "This money is going to be used to sponsor lecturers for post graduate studies within Nigeria and outside the country" the ETF boss said.

Other allocations according to Yakubu were N7 million earmarked for local-based research and N3 million for establishment or sustenance of a maximum two university based journals. Yakubu even gave an indication that the number of beneficiary institution may go higher next year with the new Taraba State University , Kwara State University , Sokoto State University and Ondo State University of Science and Technology that have just been established. Aside the universities, the ETF also continued disclosure of its 2009 intervention allocations to the education sector, pointing out again that State Ministries of Education as well as State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) are to get N13.2billion.

Yakubu used the occasion to urge beneficiaries to make frantic efforts towards accessing the fund as well as those idling away, reiterating that the ETF is not a banker for the education sector or for the institutions and that from available statistic, State Ministries of Education and SUBEBs are the real culprit when the issue of unaccessed fund comes up.

Urging them to come forward and collect their money so as to impact in education development quest of the country, the ETF boss He also gave a breakdown of the money, stating that states ministries of education will get N117million for projects as well as N5million for library development bring it to a total of N122million for each state ministry of education.The SUBEBs will get the same amount of money while the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) will get half of what is due to the state.

By this, each state ministry of education and its SUBEB will get an allocation of N244million each.The 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) including the Six Area Councils in the FCT were not left out as each of them will get N5million for projects and additional N700,000 for library development.

On the polytechnics, Yakubu disclosed N3.7 billion will be released to 54 polytechnics nationwide for developmental projects.Out of the amount, each of the 54 polytechnics got N72.34 million. The breakdown of the said amount showed that whileN25 million is ciled down for staff training and development, N3million is for research, N1 million for publication of journals as well as N38.34 for other expenses.

At the "Repositioning the ETF for improved performance and greater impact in the education sector" workshop held in Kaduna, Yakubu promised that everything will be done to ensure that beneficiaries are better informed on the demands and requirement for accessing intervention funds, accessing ETF funds for project development, especially projects and programmes that address core academic areas.

According to him, some of the challenges observed by the fund over the year include poor response of beneficiary institutions to ETF call for submission of 5-year strategic development plans and 2-year operational plans in various component of ETF intervention including the institution's accreditation status report.

He disclosed that only 5 out of 311 institutions submitted their strategic planning document noting that these aforementioned operational documents are fundamental to successful project management, delivery.

While urging all beneficiaries to forward these documents to ETF on or before January 31st, 2010, he lamented the huge level of unaccessed intervention fund and said it is and unpleasant phenomenon that is very challenging.

The Colleges of Education and Monotechnics were not left as they got their own fair share of the allocation but not without their names also on the list of defaulters!

The effort of government to turn the education sector around especially through the ETF as far as funding was concerned was not lost on the Executive Secretary of a sister agency, the National Universities Commission, Prof. Julius Okojie.

Prof. Okojie in Abuja challenged State Governments on the need for increased funding for capital projects in their universities, saying "a situation where only ETF's intervention becomes the only fund for capital projects in the state universities is unacceptable".

Another person is the Deputy National Secretary (DNS) of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who doubles as the Chairman of ETF Board Dr. Musa Babayo. He pointed out that the success of the ETF projects depends on the proper conceptualization, wide range consultation and implementation based on full compliance with due process. He assured all beneficiaries that while implementing the special projects, the regular intervention would not suffer in any way.

Also speaking at the occasion, the Executive Secretary of National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Dr. Nuru Yakubu commended ETF for it innovation in detecting areas that needs intervention in tertiary institutions noting that no matter how small such funds are, they will go a long in solving some of the need problems.

Dr. Yakubu assured that NBTE will continue to carry out it regulating role to ensure that technical and vocational education take it rightful place in the society stressing that technical education is the master key to prosperity.

It is however important at this juncture to reiterate that immediately the four month old industrial action by unions in the nation's university system came to an end, Federal Government has called on institutions yet to access over N23.6billion intervention fund with the Education Trust Fund (ETF) to do so or forfeit same within the next two months.

By first quarter of 2009, the level of unaccessed funds grew with the accumulation of a staggering sum of N23.672billion and the Education Minister, Dr. Sam Egwu who had then endorsed the drastic measure initiated by ETF, leading to the publication of the names of beneficiaries with huge amount still outstanding may be serious with "with a date-line of 31st December 2009 for utilization or forfeiture of same"

It is still early before public officers are called names more so when the ETF fund needs no counterpart funding to be accessed. All that is needed is accountability and ability to present project plans that are genuine and aimed at developing the education sector!

Some of the State Ministries of Education that still have outstanding running into millions of naira as at October include Cross River State N239.4million, Imo State N198.1million, Plateau State N194.8million, Bayelsa State N193.4million, Bauchi State N189.8million, Borno State N185.6million, Kwara State N170.2million among others.

Already, the same ETF recently disclosed that plans for the construction of N15billion world class Central Teaching and Research Laboratories to be located in the six-geopolitical zones of the country is now at advanced stage.

According to ETF, the said laboratories will compliment the upgrading efforts of the Federal Government for selected universities in Nigeria and is not prejudice to the N5.5billion earmarked for intervention to upgrade other selected institutions by the government.

For the benefit of doubt, the stated benefiting institutions are: University of Ibadan and Yaba College of Technology, University of Benin and Federal Polytechnic, Omu, Rivers, University of Nigeria Nsukka and Federal Polytechnic ,Afikpo Imo, as well Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and Kaduna Polytechnic ..

Others are University of Maiduguri and Federal College of Education Technical Gombe, University of Ilorin and, Federal College of Education Kotangora.

Prof. Yakubu had explained that Nigeria as a nation must embark on something huge in the areas of science and technology to make any meaningful impact in the areas of development among the comity of nations especially that none of its universities is currently ranked among the top 1000 in the world.

"The ETF has been reviewing its processes and procedure in the last eight years and we have realized that to succeed as a nation that wants to be part of the world's 20 biggest economies by the year 2020, we need world class manpower, world class universities and world class infrastructure. That is why we have come up with this intervention" he said.

"We will train the technicians, technologists and even some of the academic staff about the equipment. The ETF would make provision for long term sustainability of this equipment. They are going to be national edifices we are not just going to construct and hand over to the universities."

ASUU, SSANU, NASU, NAATs, ASUP, COEASU chapters in these institutions must rise to the occasion and compel their management(s) to access these funds at least that will be a starting point.

This is not a situation of war between government any union, stakeholders. If there is any legitimate stumbling stone which impedes their effort(s) to access these funds, let the beneficiaries shout to high heavens.

ETF has shouted, the public is shouting, let the beneficiaries shout also or better still access the fund now! The Nigeria education system needs the entire available fund to survive!