In renewed efforts to address the critical shortage of high-quality academic resources in Nigerian universities and colleges, the Federal Government has unveiled fifty (50) textbooks written by Nigerian authors for tertiary institutions.
The initiative was spearheaded by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), under the Higher Education Book Development Intervention Project
The Minister of Education, Maruf Tunji Alausa who presented the books to the public on Tuesday in Abuja, noted that over time, tertiary institutions in the country have been depending on books published outside the country.
Alausa who expressed worry over the poor quality of most academic publications in the country, noted that nurturing the culture of quality authorship and the production of indigenous books would not only ensure the availability of relevant books, but it would safeguard national pride and reduce the demand for foreign exchange
He said: “Scarcity of tertiary-level texts in Nigeria has reached a crisis proportion as evident not only in the quality of books available but also in the quantity of books produced locally. The need to tackle this crisis head-on resulted in the establishment of TETFund’s Higher Education Book Development Project.
“Teaching and research depend on relevant instructional materials such as published books and journals, monographs, and other specialised reading materials as well as e-publishing of books and journals.”
The minister disclosed that the government was giving more attention to publication through TETFund in a bid to provide adequate indigenous learning materials in tertiary institutions.
Executive Secretary of TETFund, Sonny Echono noted that TETFund Higher Education Book Development Project was established to the address the gap instituted by insufficient high-quality tertiary-level textbooks in Nigeria. To ensure that this initiative was effectively implemented, the Board of Trustees of TETFund took a crucial step in 2009 by setting up the Technical Advisory Group (TAG).
Echono disclosed that over 130 manuscripts have passed through rigorous review processes and have been published as textbooks, with more manuscripts currently under review.
“Members of TAG consist of academic experts drawn from the six geopolitical zones, representatives of academic unions (ASUU, ASUP, and COAESU), as well as representatives of three Regulatory Bodies (NUC, NBTE, and NCC).
“Following the reconstitution of the Technical Advisory Group Committee upon my assumption of duty as Executive Secretary in 2022, tremendous achievements were made, including the production and public presentation of eighty (80) titles of TETFund Sponsored Books in various subjects for tertiary educational institutions.
“The TAG Committee was reconstituted in June 2024, and based on the fresh target set, a total of ninety-seven (97) manuscripts were reviewed, scrutinised, and recommended for publication. Out of these, fifty (50) manuscripts have been published and are now here with us for public presentation.
“Another sixty (60) books are scheduled for unveiling before the end of 2025. It is important to also note that, in our efforts to ensure value for money, authors will now receive monetary compensation based on the number of pages in their books instead of 1,000 copies of their books being given to them.”
Chairman of the Technical Advisory Group for TETFund on Academic Book Publication and Professional Journal Funding, Professor Albert Abegunde said the books were aimed at promoting literacy, preserving culture, expanding technology, encouraging entrepreneurship, fostering research and innovation to build generations.
According to him, 5 of the books were on Medicine and Pharmacy, 11 on Art, Culture and Literature; 2 on Law, 6 on Technology and Engineering; 2 on Mathematics, 7 on Agriculture and Environment, 5 on Economics and Management, 1 on Entrepreneurship and Vocational Studies, 3 on Statistics and Research Methods, 7 on Education and General Literacy, and 1 on Security.
Abegunde added that TAG has cleared about 50 more manuscripts for publication, and that TETFund has sent some of them to publishing houses.
“In addition, close to 30 manuscripts will be added to this number in the next TAG meeting, while a similar number of manuscripts were undergoing rigorous peer review.”
Chairman, Board of Trustees of TETFund, Aminu Bello Masari expressed delight at the Fund’s ability to consistently discharge its obligations with integrity, transparency, and in total compliance with the Federal Government’s extant rules and regulations.
