Of varsities and quality education

THE United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) recommends that every nation in the United Nations Organisation (UN) allocate per cent of its annual budget to the education sector. However, the present Nigerian budget allocates N620.5 billion to the education sector and this constitutes only 7.05 per cent of the country’s annual budget. As I scrolled through my Twitter platform recently, I witnessed an argument that ensued between two students, one from a private university and the other from a government-owned university. The student of a public university said: “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 current achievements of most private universities in the country and vowed that private universities would soon take over 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state of public universities caused by incessant strike actions, unconducive learning environments, libraries with outdated books that cannot be used for assignments not to talk of research, and laboratories with old, spoilt equipment have made students in these institutions slaves 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 boast of the best teaching personnel, they do not have strikes that elongate their academic calendars, and they enjoy the best condition of learning. Hence, when the private school student in the argument stated that “everything that grows is destined to change,” I realised that what he meant was the fact that private universities continue to grow in number and prestige in the country.

From the first private university in Nigeria, Igbinedion University that was established only in 1999, the number of private universities has grown immensely; there are presently 79 private universities in Nigeria. Opposed to this is the number of public universities in the country since the establishment of University of Ibadan in 1948. There are 48 public universities which are poorly funded. In terms of prestige, a private university like Covenant University was 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 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 are taken to revamp public universities. The blight that killed public primary schools and secondary school schools will equally kill public universities. In the next ten to 20 years , public universities must improve their quality content. They must have adequate funds and sound monitoring. However, the government does not take education very seriously and these schools may have  to be self-sufficient. I do not advise that they get private funding or become privately-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, it averages an annually generated revenue of $100 million.

Public universities in the country may not be able  follow in the same step as the University of Virginia.  However, government should appoint people with business expertise into the management teams of public  universities. These individuals will be mandated to recommend means of generating internal revenue. Such means may include investment in structures such as shopping malls and hotels that will not only attract customers but also sponsors. Such investments will aid in generating funds for public universities and improve their infrastructure, making them not totally dependent on the government for their sustenance. Despite the increasing rate of sponsorships and investments in 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 them. I believe that public universities will not collapse if the government funds them properly.

• Oluwadara lives in Ibadan.