TETFund eliminates vendor use for content-related interventions, emphasizing academic and professional training opportunities through MOUs
Arch. Sonny Echono refutes misleading reports, clarifying TETFund’s shift away from “Nyanya training” and savings through MOU approach since 2016
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has announced the elimination of vendor use for its content-related interventions, such as research grants and professional and academic staff training.
Arch. Sonny Echono, the Executive Secretary of TETFund, made this declaration in response to a report alleging questionable contract awards by the fund. He described the report as misleading and a misrepresentation of facts.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, Echono explained, “There is a fundamental difference between our various forms of interventions. When we execute infrastructure projects or procure tools and equipment for laboratories, we use the contract system because it is the most suitable way of obtaining those services.”
He clarified that TETFund no longer engages in what is colloquially termed “Nyanya training,” where vendors are hired. Participants gather at a hotel for tea without substantial academic or professional training.
“We conduct rigorous academic and professional training, sponsoring individuals for post-doctoral research, bench work, academic degrees at the master’s and PhD levels, and certification in ICT to enhance employability,” Echono stated. “These are opportunities we offer to our students and academics, and for this purpose, we have always adopted a memorandum of understanding (MOU), making the difference very clear.”
Echono emphasized that TETFund has shifted away from the practice of individuals seeking contracts through portfolio visits, opting instead for the MOU approach since 2016. He expressed satisfaction with the billions of naira saved through this system, noting that some individuals are discontented with the change and seek to revert to the old order.
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