HAVE PRIVATE
UNIVERSITIES BECOME THE PANACEA FOR QUALITY TERTIARY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA?
The United Nations Educational Scientific
and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) recommends every nation in the United
Nations Organisation (UN) should allocate 26% percent of their annual budget to
education sector. However, the present Nigeria budget allocates 620.5 billion
naira to the education sector and this constitutes only 7.05% of the country’s
annual budget.
Last week, as I scrolled through my
Twitter platform, I witnessed an argument that ensued between two students. One
from a private university in Nigeria and the other from a government owned
university. The student of the public university mocked and said to the other,
“It is almost impossible to get first class in public universities, my third
class is better than your first class". His counterpart, obviously annoyed,
stated the present achievements of most private universities in Nigeria and
vowed that private universities will soon take over Nigeria because “everything
that grows is destined to change".
The argument between these two parties made
me think about how public universities students take pride in their struggles
for education in a dysfunctional system. It is as though they do not realise
that they are entitled to good educational facilities, comfortable environment
for learning and smooth flow of the academic calendar. Basically, the only
benefit they enjoy is the availability of the best of teaching personnel.
The dilapidated state of public
universities caused by incessant strike actions, unconducive learning
environments, libraries with outdated books that cannot be used for assignments
not to talk of researches, laboratories with old, spoilt and unrepaired
equipment have made students in these institutions slave to the mentality that
“you have to suffer to get good education”.
However, as opposed to the system in
public universities, the system in private universities offers more to students
in terms of facilities, effective funding of their activities, library and
laboratory resources, functional teaching and research equipment. Although they
might not be entitled to the best teaching personnel, they do not have strikes
that elongate their academic calendar and they enjoy the best condition of
learning in Nigeria.
Hence, when the private school student in
the argument stated “everything that grows is destined to change", I
realized what he meant was the fact that private universities continue to grow
in number and prestige in Nigeria. Looking back at the first established
private university in Nigeria “Igbinedion University” that was just established
in 1999, the number of private universities has grown immensely, they are
presently 79 private universities in Nigeria. Opposed to this is the number of
public universities that are present in Nigeria, after the establishment of
University of Ibadan in 1948. There are 48 public universities in Nigeria which
are poorly funded. Also, in terms of prestige, private universities like
Covenant University has been ranked number 401 in the ranking of world best
universities in 2019. It ranked above its Counterparts University of Ibadan and
University of Lagos that successfully made the list.
Thus, considering the rate at which private
universities keep growing in number and prestige, the question remains will
they become our only hope for quality education in Nigeria? Yes, they will
become our only hope, unless drastic measures is taken to revamp Public
Universities in Nigeria, the blight that killed public primary schools and
secondary school schools will equally kill public universities.
In the next ten to twenty years in Nigeria,
in order for public universities to improve their quality in the system. They
have to get adequate funds and sound monitoring. However, the rate at which the
government of Nigeria do not take education very seriously, these schools may have
to be self-sufficient.
I do not advice that they try to get
private funding or become private owned because as Walter Lippmann once stated
“where all think alike, no one thinks very much". Hence, I advise that
they opt for means to generate revenue for themselves. For instance, the
University of Virginia has been able to generate enough revenue for itself by
being dedicated to athletic activities. Thus, they average an annually
generated revenue of 100 million dollars.
Public universities in Nigeria may not be able
follow in the same step as the University of Virginia. However, government should appoint people
with business expertise in public universities management to recommend means of
generate internal revenues. Such means may include investment in structures
such as shopping malls and hotels that will not only attract customers but also
sponsors. By so doing, such investments will aid to generate funds for Public
universities to improve their infrastructures and make them not totally
dependent on government for their sole survival.
Despite the increasing rate of the
sponsorships and investments of Private Universities, Public Universities are
still the panacea for good education in Nigeria and will continue to be, if
there is cooperation and resilience between the government and university
administrators towards investing in public universities. Against all odds, I
believe Public Universities will not get to a state of ramshackle if the
government provides proper funding and investments in public universities.
Article By:
ADESANYA Oluwadara Temiloluwa
University of Ibadan
Department of Communication and Language Art
Faculty of Art
