TETFund cracks down on abandoned projects, bars new approvals for affected schools
By Uji A Iliyasu, Abuja
The Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has announced stringent measures to address persistent delays in the execution of intervention projects across beneficiary institutions, warning that institutions with abandoned or overdue projects will not be permitted to initiate new ones under the 2027 intervention cycle.
Chairman of the Board, Rt. Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, said the decision followed growing concerns over the failure of some institutions to complete approved projects within stipulated timelines.
He acknowledged that fluctuations in the prices of construction materials, including cement, reinforcement bars, and electrical and sanitary fittings, contributed to earlier delays, prompting the Board to introduce a special intervention line in 2023 to facilitate the completion of affected projects.
Masari said the initiative recorded significant success, with many stalled projects completed. However, he expressed dissatisfaction that delays continue to persist in some institutions despite the intervention.
He identified the major causes as frequent changes in institutional leadership, with new heads preferring fresh projects to completing inherited ones, as well as delays in processing payments to contractors.
He stressed that TETFund-funded projects must not be hindered by internal bureaucracy or institutional politics.
To permanently address the problem, the Board has approved a series of immediate measures. Beneficiary institutions are required to compile a comprehensive inventory of all projects delayed by more than six months, clearly stating the causes of delay and proposed solutions. Such projects must also be ranked according to priority, with detailed cost estimates for their completion.
The Board further directed institutions to strengthen project supervision through active involvement of their Physical Planning and Maintenance Departments to ensure timely delivery, cost efficiency, and adherence to quality standards.
Under the new directive, institutions with delayed projects must prioritise their completion using Annual, Zonal, and High Impact Intervention allocations. Consequently, no new projects from affected institutions will be considered for the 2027 intervention cycle.
The BoT also announced that monitoring teams comprising Board members and TETFund technical staff will inspect affected projects between August and September 2026. Their findings will guide deliberations at the Board’s statutory meeting in October 2026, where projects eligible for inclusion in the 2027 disbursement guidelines will be approved.