TETFund charges institutions on inclusive education

UNIVERSITIES, polytechnics and colleges of education have been urged to implement the decision of the 62nd National Council on Education (NCE) on inclusive and equitable quality education.

The executive secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Dr. Abdullahi Bichi Baffa, made the call during a sensitisation visit to the Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo States, recently.

Dr Baffa, represented by the director, Research and Development, Mallam Aliyu Na’iya, said TETFund had resolved to support efforts aimed at ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education as well as promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all as contained in the fourth Sustainable Development Goal of the Education 2030 agenda.

He urged public tertiary institutions to include courses on inclusive education as part of their academic staff training and development for TETFund intervention.

The decision on inclusive education was reached at the 62nd meeting of the National Council on Education held in Kano from 24th to 28th July, 2017.

“Our beneficiary institutions are, therefore, urged to factor this decision in their proposal for our AST&D and conference attendance intervention programmes for our consideration,” he said.

He explained that the aim of the policy was to remove the barriers that prevent students with physical and learning disabilities from participating fully in education.

Dr. Baffa explained further that TETFund would also ensure that lecturers receive the right training for handling students with special needs who are vulnerable to marginalisation and exclusion from education.

He said TETFund was committed to ensuring quality of tertiary education delivery and improving the global competitiveness of Nigerian institutions.