Chairman, Committee of Vice Chancellors of Private Universities in Nigeria, Prof. Kabiru Adeyemo, who is the Vice Chancellor of Lead City University (LCU), Ibadan,has urged the federal government to create a more conducive environment for private universities to thrive in Nigeria.
One of the ways is to ensure that taxpayers’ money is enjoyed by students and lecturers of both public and private universities, especially in the areas of scholarships and research grants, Adeyemo said.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday – yesterday, March 24 – in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, to mark the kick-off of the 20th anniversary of LCU, which would also feature among other activities for a week, medical outreach, during which 50 persons in need of surgeries would be helped to go through the procedures without paying money, Adeyemo called for students of private universities to be allowed to enjoy scholarships by assisting them with their school fees through Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) towards alleviating the financial burdens many students face..
”In terms of TETFund, as the Chairman of the Committee of Vice Chancellors of Private Universities, we have made our positions known that private universities should also enjoy the same facilities like public universities. Our students should be given scholarships; I mean, assist the students to offset some of their school fees,” he said.
Adeyemo also made a case for lecturers, proposing that they should have access to similar opportunities to foster a sense of belonging within the academic community.
“Lecturers in private universities should also be allowed ro enjoy these facilities like their counterparts in the public universities so that they too would have a sense of belonging. At least, TETFund money is taxpayers’ money and should not be enjoyed only by government-owned universities.
“The federal government should try to create a very good and enabling environment for private universities so that the stakeholders of private universities would be able to survive.
“The National Universities Commission(NUC), the Federal Government and all other stakeholders must give us a very good motivation for private universities in Nigeria to definitely survive,” the LCU VC said.
On the 20th anniversary of LCU that has produced about 25,000 graduates, Adeyemo said: “Over the past two decades, our university has evolved from a modest beginning into one of Nigeria’s leading private institutions, setting benchmarks in academic excellence, research, and community impact.”
According to him, LCU has actively engaged in the town and gown initiative by awarding over ₦322million in scholarships to 905 students during the 2022/2023 academic session based on merit and financial need.
The LCU, which was established in 2005 with a student population of about 4,000, now has about 20,000 students in 2025.
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