By Ozioruva Aliu
BENIN CITY – THE Chairman, University of Benin Development Trust Fund Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and the Vice Chancellor of the University , Professor Edoba Omoregie (SAN) have promised that the funds raised would be judiciously used strictly for the purpose it was meant for which is ti development of the school.
Speaking over the weekend at the launch of a N100bn Trust Development Fund to complement government funding, strengthen teaching, learning, and expand research capacity Ize-Iyamu said Fund’s target is to mKe the University the best in Nigeria.
He said “Today we have made history because the University of Benin is the first to do this and we urge all alumni to continue to contribute to this Fund
“We want assure that the funds will be well used, we have put in our personal funds to get here and we will continue to donate until the University of Benin gets to a level where our students will begin to withdraw from schools abroad to school here.”
On his part, Omoregie said the Fund was registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) adding that the funds from the federal government would not be mixed with monies from Fund even all would be geared towards developing the University.
He said “The trust is registered with the CAC, the funds here will not be mixed with the funds coming from the federal government, there will be annual returns as we will be held accountable for the utilisation of the funds.’
Speaking as a special guest of honour at the launching, Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the initiative “aligns perfectly with the Federal Ministry of Education’s Nigerian Education Sector Renewable Initiative, NERSRI,” which he said seeks to reposition education through “innovation, strategic partnerships, improved governance, quality assurance, digital transformation, expanded access and sustainable financing.”
The Minister who was represented by Prof. Joseph Ahaneku, called on other “universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, alumni bodies, corporate organizations, philanthropies and friends of education across Nigeria to emulate the UNIBEN initiative.
In his speech, Chairman of the event and former Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola, SAN, said as the population of the university steadily grows, the needs too have multiplied hence it becomes necessary to have a development fund that would cater for the multiplying needs.
Fashola, who is a product of the university, told the alumni and other donors that the fundraising was, therefore, their contribution towards “ensuring that the mission of the founders endures.”
On his part, the Chief Host and governor of Edo State, Monday Okpebholo, said the government alone cannot fund the growing needs of higher education in the country, just as he called on
corporate organisations, distinguished alumni, and public-spirited individuals to contribute generously to the Fund.
He added: “Sustainable universities are built through partnerships among government, the private sector, alumni, philanthropists, development partners, and friends of the institution. The establishment of this Trust Development Fund is therefore a visionary initiative that deserves the support of all. Every investment made today is an investment in knowledge, innovation, national development, and future generations.”
