By Dauda R Pam Maiduguri
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has executed about 10,000 projects in 226 public tertiary institutions in its efforts to transform the education sector nation wide.
Chairman TETFund, Alhaji Kashim Imam, disclosed this at the just concluded TETFund/FIRS 2021 joint interactive forum held at Pinnacle Hotels Monday in Maiduguri.
In the same vein he hinted that, it has also “trained over 30,000 academic staff in Phd, and MSC studies both within and outside the country”.
The 2021 Joint interactive session, which is the 6th in the series, was held in all the six geopolitical zones with a view of increasing the revenue collections of the TETFUND and also account to the public over what is being done with their taxes.
TETFund, the chairman said had targetted about N500 billion in 2021 but due to COVID-19 pandemic, only about N300 billion was realized.
According to him, the interactive session will afford them the opportunity to account for what they have been doing with tax payers money as they continue to put heads together to improve on Education Development Tax”.
”In 2021, the Fund designated 12 universities as Centres of Excellence and were given N1 billion each, while six Federal Polytechnics and six Colleges of Education also got N1 billion each which was spread across the six geopolitical zones”, Imam added.
And that, also the Fund last year celebrated its 10th anniversary attracted applause from people stressing that “if not for TETFUND, what wil be of our tertiary institutions?”.
In a paper presentation: “Improving EDT Collection in the Post Pandemic Era”, the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Alhaji Muhammad Nami, said the Service has in June last year deployed Promax technology that gives opportunity to taxpayer to pay in the comfort of his room and get tax certificate.
Represented by the Coordinating of Tax Operating Group, Alhaji Kabir Abba said: “2020 to 2021 recorded low tax generation due to COVID-19 pandemic but I want toassure the TETFUND that with the deployment of PROMAX technology in June last year, which gives opportunity to taxpayer to pay their taxes at the comfort of their rooms/offices and get tax certificates, as well as block leakages, tax collection will increase which in turn means increased TETFUND revenue”.
He said the technology, which is a game changer, will also block leakage stressing that business of tax collection is not a FIRS business but that of FIRS, taxpayers and TETFund.
Nami said the services has also established Intelligence and strategic data department to block leakages in tax collection to monitor tax payment, adding that the Service partners the ICPC, EFCC, Customs Service ,among others to improve tax collections..
Also speaking, the Vice Chancellor, University of Maiduguri, Prof. Aliyu. Shugaba, who was represented by the DVC Administration, Prof. laminu Mohammed, said UNIMAID has always benefitted from the fund right from. ETF and that if not for TETFUND what will be of the tertiary institutions in the country.
He said: “All issues in universities revolve around funding, even the issue of ASUU strike is funding. TETFUND has been a stabilizing factor in the education sector
