The Lagos Chamber of Commerce (LCCI) says the federal government must urgently grant financial autonomy to universities across Nigeria because the current funding model was unsustainable with the current revenue challenge the country was experiencing.
Universities lecturers under the umbrella of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) across Nigeria have been strike since February over pay, welfare and crumbling facilities in the nation’s public universities. The latest strike by ASUU, known for its work stoppages.
But, LCCI advised government to consider equity investments to fund infrastructure in public universities across Nigeria as part of the solution.
The Chamber, in a statement issued on Sunday on the 2023 budget, and signed by its Director General, Chinyere Almona, however, applauded government for allocation of N470billion to revitalize the tertiary institutions and enhance salaries of university staff.
“The allocation of N470billion to revitalize the tertiary institutions and enhance salaries of university staff is commendable and at least a show of concern about the plight of the university community in recent times.
“However, we must accept that the current funding model for our universities is not sustainable in the face of the many revenue challenges being tackled by the government. A more sustainable way is to grant financial autonomy to the universities with a new emphasis on equity investments for infrastructure”, the LCCI said.
Read also: ASUU strike, future of education and student loan
The LCCI Further urged government to
to consider more efficient alternatives to borrowings, rather than issuing N10.57trillion new loans to finance a deficit of N10.78 trillion, as proposed in the 2023 budget.
The business advocacy body, argued further that while a budget deficit of N10.78 trillion was not out of place, but disagreed with issuing N10.57 trillion new loans to finance the deficit.
According to the statement, “We are of the view that while nothing is wrong with the N10.78 trillion deficit, everything is wrong with the plan to issue N10.57 trillion (N8.8 trillion in new commercial loans and N1.77 trillion drawdown on bilateral and multilateral loans) new loans to finance the deficit, at a time that we are already placed on the watchlists of some of our foreign bondholders, and the world is still trying to process our president’s well-publicized call for debt cancelation at the last United Nations General Assembly”.
