UNIUYO VC decries funding gaps in varsities, seeks alumni intervention
June 27, 2026 9:01 am
Uniuyo VC in (blue suit) and officials of the University Alumni Association during the ceremony in the institution’s main campus, Nwanniba road on Friday
By Patrick Odey
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Uyo, Professor Chris Ekong, has raised the alarm over the funding deficit in Nigerian universities, lamenting that funds allocated to public universities in the country fall short of what is required to maintain operations and deliver quality education.
He disclosed that capital budgets allocated to public universities in the past four years have been less than 10 per cent, adding that federal officials come yearly to collect 25 per cent of universities’ internally generated revenue, and failure to comply could result in deductions from their personnel budgets.
The VC raised the concerns while speaking at the University Alumni Association’s one-year anniversary lecture and the official handover of the renovated 550-capacity ELF Lecture Theatre. The event, themed *”From Great Minds to Great Impact,”* was held at the university’s main campus on Nwaniba Road on Friday.
“It’s disappointing that Nigerian Universities are still not being well funded. Capital budget for the past four years given to universities is less than 10 percent. The universities have no money, but federal officials are coming every year to collect 25% of the internally generated revenue and if you don’t give they will charge from your personnel budget,the budget you should have used in paying That is the situation that we are in,God will help us,” Ekong said.
He called on the University Alumni Association to intervene and help bridge the funding deficit, adding that he would invite the association to be part of his Advisory Committee.
“The universities are so poor, we want the Alumni to help us. I want to thank the Association for taking positive steps towards the provision of this recovered edifice. During the courtesy visit in the morning, I said I’m going to invite the Alumni into my Advisory Committee, so you can know what we are doing with the money we collect on your behalf, know what we are doing with intellectual property because it’s your university,” the VC added.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the President of the University Alumni Association, Mr Ekerete Adiaiduo, highlighted some of the interventions carried out by the association, including efforts to address the prolonged transcript issuance crisis that had caused anxiety among students, graduates, and institutional stakeholders.
He also said the association acted to restore power supply to the Examinations and Records Unit, which had been plagued by erratic operations, by donating a generating set to augment electricity supply, thereby restoring efficiency and easing concerns among stakeholders.
“One of our earliest and most consequential interventions addressed a crisis that had put students, graduates, and institutional stakeholders in a state of prolonged anxiety concerning the delayed transcript issuance debacle.
“Power supply to the Examinations and Records Unit had become so erratic that operations were near-paralysed. We acted. We provided a generating set to augment electricity supply to that unit, restoring efficiency and calming nerves that had been on edge for too long. Alumni who needed their credentials to pursue opportunities abroad could breathe again,” he said.
Adiaiduo said the association has begun bridging the distance between Uyo and alumni scattered across the globe. He added that outreach initiatives are underway to connect with UniUyo alumni in the diaspora, with the goal of channelling their expertise, networks, and goodwill towards the development of the university.
The keynote speaker and former Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja, Professor Philip Afaha, in his lecture titled *”From Great Minds to Great Impacts: The Role of Alumni Associations in Institutional Growth and National Transformation,”* warned the association against using the platform to harass university management for contracts, employment, and admission opportunities, as is the case in some institutions.
According to him, “Though universities are mostly established by the state, like the case of Uniuyo, universities require constant interventions and support of their products to survive. Universities should not rely entirely on the government in a troubled economy like ours, when the economy is on life support.
“Alumni must step in as an important source that the university can turn to in difficult situations. Alumni Association role is to attract development to the university through scholarship, grants, endowment, infrastructure, research support etc, and not an empowerment platform for former students.”
Patrick Odey is a journalist at Punch Newspapers with over 22 years of experience in the media industry. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Language from the University of Port Harcourt and a Postgraduate Diploma in Mass Communication from the Nigeria Institute of Journalism. He has worked with notable publications including Post Express, Daily Champion, and Daily Trust, before joining Punch Newspapers. His career reflects a strong commitment to credible journalism, in-depth reporting, and public interest storytelling.
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