ASUU Update – SSANU Announced that Jonathan Approves N400Billion

The end to the present strike
by the Academic Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU) may be
in sight as President
Goodluck Jonathan has
approved N400 billion for the infrastructural
development of Nigerian
universities.

The document to this effect
is expected to be made
available today at the
meeting of the presidential
committee on
implementation of the NEEDS assessment in the universities
with the leaders of the four
university-based unions – the
Senior Staff Association of
Nigerian Universities (SSANU)
, the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and
Associated Institutions
(NASU), the National
Association of Academic
Technologists (NAAT) and
the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

The President of SSANU,
Samson Ugwoke, made the
revelation while addressing
his union members at the
SSANU National Executive
Committee (NEC) meeting held at the weekend at the
University of Abuja.

Ugwoke, briefing the SSANU
members on the activities of
the NEEDS assesment
implementation committee,
led by Benue State Governor,
Gabriel Suswam. He noted that the fund was different
from the N100 billion
Governor Suswam had raised
from donor agencies and big
companies to tackle the
problems of Nigerian universities in 2013.

The labour leader said: “Let
me give you a tip on what
the NEEDS assessment
committee is doing. The
president has approved that
within the next four years; N400 billion would be
expended in infrastructural
development of Nigerian
universities, to transform
the universities to
international standard.

“N100 billion has already
been raised by Suswam
committee out of which 61
universities have been
pencilled down, as contained
in the NEEDS assessement committee. The N100 billion
is expected to address needs
of the universities in the
areas which include re-
furbishing and renovation of
lecture theatres and lecture halls, re-furbishing and
renovation of laboratories/
libraries and the renovation
of hostels.

“The second category is
building of new hostels of
international standard, self-
contained rooms, the latest
model in the world. That is
the standard to be built in every university, and also
the state-of-the-art
laboratories as well as
classrooms, lecture theatres
and the halls.”

Ugwoke pointed out that the
money had been shared and
out of the N100 billion, N96
billion had been sent to
universities.

He added: “The committee is
meeting again on Monday,
and by Monday (today), the
document will be out. This
time around, it is not only by
giving university money, but it will be monitored to
ensure that the money is
used to transform the
universities, to bail
universities out of the
present situation and developed to an international
recognized university
standard.”