Stakeholders in Nigeria’s university system have urged federal, state, and private universities to strengthen their capacity to secure international grants and adopt strategic approaches to resource mobilisation. They emphasised that this is essential for remaining competitive, globally relevant, and financially sustainable in an increasingly dynamic academic landscape.
Call for Strategic Resource Mobilisation
The call was made by Prof. Andrew Haruna, Secretary-General of the Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (CVCNU), alongside Mr. Ken Oguzie, Chief Executive Officer of Optimal Delivery Solutions Projects and Corporate Services Limited, during a collaborative research workshop in Abuja. The workshop, themed ‘Unlocking Global Funding: Resource Mobilisation and International Grantsmanship for Nigerian Universities,’ brought together vice-chancellors, research officers, grants administrators, and other key stakeholders.
Over-Reliance on Government Funding
Participants observed that many Nigerian universities still depend heavily on government subventions and allocations from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund). Several alternative funding streams remain underused or poorly coordinated across institutions. This over-reliance on public funding has left universities vulnerable to budgetary constraints, delays in disbursement, and limited room for innovation, especially as the cost of research infrastructure, laboratory equipment, and academic resources continues to rise.
Widening Funding Disparities
Concerns over widening funding disparities were raised following reports that the University of Cape Town in South Africa recently unveiled an endowment fund valued at about N441 billion. This figure significantly surpasses the combined N6.8 billion endowments recorded by eight Nigerian public universities. According to participants, this highlights persistent structural challenges within Nigeria’s higher education system, particularly in alternative funding, institutional sustainability, and long-term financial planning. While foreign universities have built robust endowment and grant systems over decades, many Nigerian institutions are yet to institutionalise similar structures, leaving them at a disadvantage in the global academic space.
Global Academic Evolution
Speaking at the event, Haruna noted that the global academic environment has evolved considerably, with leading universities increasingly relying on competitive grants to drive innovation, research output, infrastructure development, and institutional advancement. Although Nigerian universities are eligible for several international funding opportunities from agencies such as the European Union, United States National Science Foundation, Wellcome Trust, Ford Foundation, and others, many institutions continue to struggle with weak proposal development, limited institutional frameworks for grants acquisition, poor alignment with donor priorities, and inadequate collaboration.
“For many universities, reliance on government subvention remains dominant, while alternative funding sources such as international grants, industry partnerships, and collaborative research networks are not being strategically explored,” Haruna stated. He described the workshop as timely and necessary, adding that it would equip participants with practical tools to strengthen institutional capacity, improve proposal-writing skills, and foster effective partnerships that can make Nigerian universities more attractive to international funders.
Underutilised Funding Opportunities
Stakeholders identified several funding opportunities that Nigerian universities are not fully exploring. These include research commercialisation and patents, alumni endowment funds, industry-sponsored research, international competitive grants, venture capital and start-up incubation, diaspora academic partnerships, executive education programmes, agricultural commercial ventures, philanthropic funding, and intellectual property management. They noted that a significant amount of research generated in Nigerian universities ends up as academic publications in journals, rather than being transformed into patents, products, licences, start-ups, or commercial ventures that can generate revenue and address societal problems.
Positive Steps by Some Universities
However, some universities are already taking steps to bridge the gap. Institutions such as Covenant University and the University of Port Harcourt were cited as examples of schools that have started developing innovation ecosystems and strengthening industry collaboration around research commercialisation. Similarly, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ife, was highlighted for its partnership with the financial technology company OPay, aimed at supporting scholarships and student development initiatives. Participants also pointed to the growing establishment of grants and partnership offices in some institutions as evidence of efforts to improve access to international funding opportunities and coordinate resource mobilisation efforts more effectively.
Strategic Shifts Required
Speaking further, Ken Oguzie identified three major strategic shifts required for Nigerian universities to attract global funding. These include moving from individual-driven initiatives to institution-wide strategies, from localised thinking to global relevance, and from competition to collaboration. He stressed that most international funding organisations are increasingly interested in projects that address global challenges, such as climate change, food security, artificial intelligence, public health, renewable energy, and inclusive development. He further emphasised the importance of interdisciplinary and cross-border partnerships, noting that the most successful grants often involve collaborations across institutions and countries.
