The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has committed N6 billion to the establishment of ICT Experience Centres across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones. This investment is designed to modernise the digital landscape of the country’s higher education institutions and provide students with access to advanced technological tools.
The announcement follows the recent opening of a new facility in Oko by the wife of President Bola Tinubu. The commissioning of the Oko facility serves as a precursor to the broader rollout of these centres across the federation.
According to details of the TETFund commitment, the project aims to bridge the digital divide that currently exists between various tertiary institutions in Nigeria. By decentralising access to high-end ICT resources, the fund intends to ensure that students in all geopolitical zones receive comparable digital training and research support.
Expanding digital access to tertiary institutions
The ICT Experience Centres are expected to house modern computing hardware, high-speed internet connectivity, and specialised software required for advanced research and digital skill acquisition. These centres will act as hubs for both students and academic staff, facilitating digital literacy and supporting the integration of technology into the academic curriculum.
The decision to distribute these centres across the six geopolitical zones is intended to promote equity in educational resource allocation. Historically, certain regions have had better access to technological infrastructure than others, a gap that the N6 billion project seeks to address through systematic regional deployment.
The involvement of the First Lady in the Oko facility opening highlights the administration’s focus on education as a pillar of national development. The Oko facility, located in a key educational hub, will serve as a prototype for the subsequent installations in the North-Central, North-East, North-West, South-East, South-South, and South-West zones.
TETFund has previously focused heavily on physical infrastructure, such as lecture theatres and laboratories. This shift towards specialised ICT Experience Centres reflects an institutional strategy to prioritise digital competencies in line with global academic standards and the growing demand for tech-driven workforce skills.
The implementation of these centres will require close coordination between TETFund, the various host tertiary institutions, and regional stakeholders to ensure the equipment is properly maintained and effectively utilised. The next phase of the project involves the procurement process and the final selection of specific sites within the target zones to host the new centres.
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