Report No. 6920-UNI Nigeria Costs and Financing of Universities December 30, 1988 Western Africa Department Population and Human Resources Operations Division FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Thsdocumnent bosä r"ticed distribution and may be°used by recipients only In the performance~ thekr official dutles. ts contents may not otherwise be digciosed withou,World Bank authorization. CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS Currency Unit = Naira (N) On September 26, 1986, Nigeria 4dopted a flexible exchange rate policy and introduced a Second-tier Foreign Exchange Market (SFM) comprising an auction and an interbank market. On July 2, 1987, SPE and the official (i.e., first-tier) rates were merged. The auction rate was US$1 N 15.29 on November 24, 1988. MEASURES 1 m2 = 10.76 sq. ft. ACRONYMS COSIT Correspondence and Open Studies Unit FUTs Federal Universities of Technology JAMB Joint Admissions Matriculation Board JME Joint Matriculation Examination NDE National Directorate of Employment NSLB Nigerian Student Loan Board NUC National Universities Commission NYSC National Youth Service Corps UGC University Grants Commission UNIVERSITY ACADEMIC YEAR FISCAL YEAP October - June January 1 - December 31 FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY NIGERIA COSTS AND 7INANCING OF UNIVERSITIES TABLE OF CONTENTS ka&e CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Background and Summary .......................................... iii The Sub-Sector Study ........................................... iv Main Conclusions and Recommendations ........... ......... vii Follow-up Actions ........................ ix CHAPTER 1 - ESTABLISHI4G THE FRAMEWORK ....... ................... 1 Institutions .. ............. ...... 1 Enrollments .......................... 3 Academic Staff ................................................ 5 Courses .............. ............... 6 Financing ..................................................... 6 The Future ............................................... .... 6 CHAPTER 2 - INDICATORS OF EFFICIENCY OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM .............................. 7 Student Intake Requirements and Characteristics ............... 7 Staffing Pa terns ................................ ......... 10 Courses ....................................................... 13 Overseas Studies ............................................. 15 Universities and the School System ................. ......... 15 Internal Efficiency of Universities ................ ......... 16 Universities and the Larger Society ................ ......... 17 Inefficient Use of Capital Funds ....................... ... 18 Enrollment Growth - A Postscript .................... ........ 20 CHAPTER 3 - THE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE LABOR MARKET ................ 20 The 1983 Shuttle Employment Inquiry ........................... 20 Overall Unemployment Rates .................................. 22 Tracer Studies .............................................. 22 Graduate Earnings ........................................... 24 Geographical Differences .......................... .......... 24 National Directorate of Employment ............................ 25 Rates of Return ............................................. 25 This subsector study was largely prepared by Nicholas Bennett (Bank staff member and mission leader), and Keith Hinchliffe (consultant). Other inputs were provided by Richard Johanson (Bank staff), Christopher Modu (consultant), Phyllis Roos (editor) and Ann Joseph (report processor). Field work for the study took place from January 19 to February 6, 1987, with a follow-up visit from August 17 to 29, 1987. This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization. TABLE OF CONTENTS (CONT'D) CHAPTER 4 - UNIVERSITY BUDGETS AND OTHER FINANCIAL SOURCES ...... 26 Overall Educational Budgets .......... .............. ... ..... 26 University Budgets ............................................ 27 Tt.e Budgeting Process ......................................... 30 Federal Universities .......................................... 34 State Universities ................ ........................... 35 Scholarships for University Education ......................... 36 CHAPTER 5 - THE COST STRUCTURE OF UNIVERSITIES .................. 38 Comparative Unit Costs ................ 0.................... 38 Total Unit Costs .............................................. 39 Breakdown of Unit Costs by Component and University ........... 39 Teaching Costs by Faculty .......................... .. ....... 46 Unit Costs by Faculty and University .......................... 47 Unit Costs of Postgraduate Studies ............................ 48 Staffing Levels ............................................... 49 CHAPTER 6 - ISSUES OF UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT AND FINANCE ........ 51 Enrollment Growth ............................................... 51 Postgraduates ..... ....................... ... 52 Research ...................................................... 53 University Teaching Service ................................... 54 Use of Existing Physical Facilities and Staff ................. 54 Part-time Courses, Especially at the Postgraduate Level ....... 55 Freeze on Administrative Posts and Expenditures ............... 55 NUC and the Allocation of Funds to Universities ............... 55 Capital Development Programs .................................. 56 Foreign Exchange .............................................. 56 Course Rationalization ......................................... 57 Privatization and University Enterprises ...................... 57 User Fees ..................................................... 58 Student Fees ............... . .. . .... * ..** ................. 58 Employment .................................................... 59 Management Information System ................................ 59 Further Studies ......... . .................................... . 60 Investment Requirements ......................................... 60 References ANNEXES A. Statietical Tables B. University Case Studies I- iii - SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Background and Summary 1. During the years of oil prosperity, university enrollments in Nigeria expanded at a phenomenal rate, doubling every four or five years. This rate of growth, sustained for 25 years, was probably faster than any- where else in the world. Unfortunately, however, because financial consid- erations were not paramount this expansion took place without paying suffi- cient attention to economies of scale or cost effectiveness. Hence, the number of universities, faculties and departments and also the number of senior staff expanded as rapidly as, if not more than, enrollments and a relatively high-cost system evolved. 2. Ir addition to the growth in university recurrent expenditures, there was also a boom in construction of physical facilities of as high a quality as, if not higher than, many found in many of the more developed countries. Most universities started several expensive capital projects at the same time, and when the fall in oil prices took place and funding dried up they were faced with a multitude of unfinished projects. 3. Nevertheless, Nigeria is perhaps the only country in sub-Saharan Africa that has what could really be called a system of higher education, with 20 federal and eight state universities. It has also created the infrastructure needed to manage this system, including the National Univer- sities Commission, Joint Admissions Matriculation Board, Manpower Board, and Student Loans Board. 4. Nigeria has also gone further than most countries in Africa towards cost recovery at the university level. Most students now pay for their meals and part of their lodging; they also pay fees at the postgraduate level, and in state universities for undergraduate studies. 5. Despite these impressive achievements over the past 25 years, higher education in Nigeria now faces a serious crisis, due at least in part to the unplanned, ad-hoc expansion of enrollments, universities and faculties during periods of peak oil revenues. Overall costs and unit costs are higher than necessary. Several areas of excessive costs are apparent, two in particulars the proportion of expenditures devoted to administration, and the high costs of running postgraduate programs in many subjects at all universities, even when there might be only one or two students in each course. In addition, the university pattern adopted, with self-contained academic communities far from existing urban centers, likewise has serious cost implications. 6. Given these achievements and problems, combined with declining federal budgetary allocations to the universities, the Government realized that there will have to be a restructuring of the university system if the gains of the past quarter century are to be consolidated. - iv - The Sub-Sector Study 7. Thus, the Government decided to undertake a study of the cost and financing of universities to see if a more cost-effective system could be developed, and asked the Bank to assist the National Universities Commission (NUC) in carrying out the study. At the time of the field phase of the study the Commission was undergoing a reorganization; consequently, its participa- tion was not as active as originally planned, but its inputs were neverthe- less absolutely crucial. It should be noted that without the active cooperation and encouragement of NUC and all the universities visited, the study team could not have progressed as far as it did in such a short time. 8. Although the mandate of this study was only the costs and financing of universities, the study team felt that unless it was known what was bein.- financed and what outputs were being achieved, it would not be possible to reach any reasonable understanding of the cost and financu situation. 9. The first chapter of the report is largely descriptive, tracing the historical development of the system from the establishment of the University College at Ibadan in 1948 to the current situation where there are 20 federal and eight state universities. There have been three major periods of univer- sity developments the first in the 1960s and early 1970s when six univer- sities were established, the second in the mid-1970s when seven more univer- sities were created, and the third in the early 1980s when seven Federal Universities of Technology and eight state universities were established. Enrollment growth has been phenomenal, doubling every four or five years and reaching 126,285 in 1984/85. 10. This growth was accompanied by the creation of a series of insti- tutions (para 3) designed to enable effective planning to be undertaken. Despite the existence of these institutions, geopolitical considerations predominated in the development of the universitias, and there was a proli- feration of faculties and programs which, combined with the pattern of self- contained universities far from any urban center, led to a relatively high- cost system that has proved difficult to sustain. Academic staff has grown at roughly the same rate as enrollments, and there continues to be a depend- ence on expatriates, especially in the northern universities. With the recent depreciation of the Naira, many expatriates are not renewing their contracts, causing staffing problems in these northern universities, par- ticularly as there is no national university teaching service and it is therefore difficult for staff to transfer from one university to another. 11. Chapter 2 deals mainly with questions of interual efficiency. Despite the exceedingly high demand for university places, with only 14.6% of applicants being admitted in 1985/86, this demand is very uneven, and thus in some courses and some universities marginally qualified candidates are admitted; for example, the Federal University of Technology in Minna admitted 86.5% of its applicants, while overall throughout the country only 54.7% of science applicants gained admission. 12. There appears to be a close correlation between the intake selec- tivity ratio and the student dropout and completion rates. In the older universities where there is high competition for places, dropout rates are - v - negligible, whereas in some of the newer northern universities dropout rates in some subjects can be as high as 27.52. 13. Overall across the system, the student to teaching staff ratios established by NUC are being achieved, except in Veterinary Science. How- ever, because of the lack of a national university teaching service there is an uneven distribution of staff among the universities. 14. There has been a tendency for each university to create a ful. range of academic programs at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels, including the more expensive ones such as medicine, engineering, and agti- culture, rather than developing centers of excellence in particular univer- sities. This has had both cost and quality implications. 15. With the fall in oil prices in the early 1980s, leading to a 38% reduction in real terms in government recurrent grants to the universities, there have been increasing attempts by the universities to raise revenues through the commercialization of various services such as bookshops, univer- sity f,;rms, and consultancy services. The Federal Government attaches high priority to the development of these income-generating activities and has announced that within 10 years the universities should aim to raise up to 50% of required revenues through these activities. 16. There has been a certain extravagance in the physical development of the universities, with many grandiose projects started without the funds needed to complete them. Currently there are N1.2 billion in unfinished projects at universities throughout the country. NUC is now working on simplifying the physical planning norms developed in the late 1970s in order to prevent such a situation from recurring. 17. Chapter 3 analyzes the available data on the labor market for university graduates. The situation of the 1960s and 1970s, when every student could find employment immediately upon graduation, has changed significantly in the 1980s. Now unemployment rates of university graduates are rising, and one-third of graduates have not even managed to find a job 12 months after completing their compulsory year with the National Youth Service Corps. 18. The labor market for graduates is dominated by the public sector, with, in the past, about 85% of new graduates having found employment with state or federal government agencies. This has very serious implications for future graduate employment, given the tightening fiscal situation at both the federal and state levels, combined with a rapidly increasing output of graduates. Unless private sector and self employment can be quickly increased, graduate unemployment is likely to become a serious problem even with no further increase in enrollments. However, given the relatively low private costs of university education, private rates of return on university education remain high even for those who take as long as two years to find a job after graduation, and therefore demand for university places remains insatiable despite declining employment prospects. 19. Chapter 4 deals with the financing of the universities. Around 19% of federal and state educational budgets are devoted to universities, and over 902 of universities' recurrent budgets come from government sources. - vi - The universities have suffered considerably from the substantial fall in total government allocations from 1981 to 1987, which combined with a doubling of enrollments has reslilted in a serious reduction in unit recurrent expenditures -- so much so that many essential inputs such as library books and scientific materials can no longer be provided. In order to cushion this fall, in the 1984/85 academic year student feeding was privatized and students were expected to pay the full cost of their food (about 16Z of unit recurrent costs), boarding fees were introduced and postgraduate tuition fees charged. Lven allowing for these changes, total unit recurrent resources for running the universities have fallen in real terms throughout the 1980s. 20. Nigeria is perhaps the only country in Africa with a well-developed system of costing norms which have enabled university budget requirements to be calculated with some precision. These norms relate to the number of different categories of staff and to the amounts to be spent on goods and services, research and other public service activities, and general items. The norms were developed in the late 1970s when resource constraints were not very serious, and in 1987 resulted in total budgetary requirements almost double the amounts allocated by the Ministry of Finance. They are therefore in need of revision in order to reflect current realities. 21. Once NUC has calculated the allocation for a particular university, it is provided as a block grant and there is little control over how it is used. Thus, despite grants lower than would be allocated if the norms were applied, universities employ considerably more administrative staff than indicated by the norms. While state universities do not nave to follow the norms developed by NUC since they are largely financed by state governments, their cost structure is not much different from that of the federal univer- sities. They may, however, charge any fees they see fit, and even at the undergraduate level fees or development levies are charged. 22. About 28% of university students receive some form of scholarship, mainly from state governments. Almost all students from the northern states receive scholarships and virtually none fror the eastern and southwestern states. The number of students receiving scholarships has fallen over recent years and this, combined with increasing private costs (for meals, etc.) has made it ever more difficult for students from lower socioeconomic groups to attend university. This problem is exacerbated by the inability of the Student Loan Board to obtain repayment of old loans which could then be recycled. 23. In Chapter 5, the expenditures of universities are analyzed and compared with those that might be expected if the NUC norms were being followed. It was found that universally, much more was being spent on administration (461-57Z, compared with the norm of 31.5%) and much less on teaching, than would be the case if the norms had been followed. 24. Although the oldest six universities have an average enrollment of almost 12,000 each and those established in the mid-1970s an average enroll- ment of 4,600 each, unit recurrent costs were almost exactly the same for both, indicating that economies of scale are exhausted at an enrollment of 4,000. Beyond this, enrollments are scale neutral. This suggests that the more recently established universities should expand their enrollments at least until this level is reached. - vii - 25. Recently announced annual rates of enrollment expansion are 2.5% for the first-phase un;.versities, 10% for the second-phase and 15% for the third-phase universities. This averages around 5.5? a year. Given the current labor market situation, the expansion rate for the second-phase universities, which are already operating at an economical level, cannot be easily justified. 26. There is a wide range in unit teaching costs by subject areas. Medicine is between 3.7 and 6.6 times as expensive as the social sciences or education, and postgraduate studies are about 752 more expensive than under- graduate. 27. The final chapter draws from all the earlier ones, and makes suggestions both as to where additional information is needed and the main ways in which the cost and financing structures can be improved. 28. More detailed statistical data on intakes, enrollments, staffing and expenditures are provided in the tables in Amnex A, and brief descrip- tions of the nine universities visited by the study team are in Annex B. 29. This sub-sector study is only the first step in a much larger and longer process of reforming the cost and financing system of the univer- sitier. The study aims mainly to collect all available and relevant data, and identify data gaps, so that a full dialogue involving the Federal Ministry of Education, NUC, the universities and the Bank can take place. At this stage of the process, certain tentative recommendations are made on the basis of an analysis of existing data, but later these may be strengthened, expanded, or even dropped. Main Conclusions and Recommendations 30. The mission identified several areas where further studies need to be carried out. The most important.of these are: (a) tracer studies on recent university graduates; (b) socioeconomic profile of university students disaggregated by initial geographical residence for use in devising fees and loan policies; (c) action research to design a system to ensure that loans taken to cover fees and other expenses are reimbursed; (d) studies of university teacher workload, broken down by teaching, research and other activities; (e) surveys of use factors in classrooms and laboratories, including assumptions about lengthening the school day and year; (f) action research to simplify existing space norms; and (g) identification of the most pressing maintenance and rehabilitation needs for equipment, buildings and services. - viii - 31. Prior to these studies being carried out, however, it has been possible for the mission to identify certain policies that should be put into practice as a first step in bringing the financing of the universities to a level that can be sustained over the coming years of comparative financial stringency, many of which are already being actively considered by the Nigerian authorities. These includes (a) closing down all postgraduate programs where the full-time student equivalent does not reach a cost-effective level. Establishing centers of excellence at different universities with different subjects; (b) closing down all non-science and reducing science remedial and preparatory courses at universities, and all courses at '0 Level* or lower, and transferring these to second-cycle institutions; (c) increasing the number of courses for which an economic level of fees can be charged -- for example, postgraduate studies and part- time courses for those already in employment; such part-time courses would also allow greater utilization of physical facilities; (d) ensuring that user fees for housing, schools, water, health services, etc., are at least as high for university staff as for similar occupational groups; (e) increasing the studentlstaff ratios across the full range of staffing categories; (f) freezing the number of departments and faculties in all first- and second-phase federal universities at their current levels until economies of scale in existing departments are achieved; (g) starting any new buildings only if existing buildings can be proved to have a utilization factor of about 80% over a whole year; (h) gradually increasing the share of government allocations based on academic services, and reducing the share for administrative support; (i) simplifying physical standards and norms, and ensuring that for any construction project these norms are strictly adhered to; (j) lengthening the university year by adding one semester, at least for science disciplines and other areas where there is a clear demand, with each student studying only two out of three semesters a year, thus reducing overcrowding on campuses; lengthening the university day where necessary so that all students have adequate access to laboratories and workshops; and (k) increasing staff-student contact hours. 32. Finally, the mission identified, but did not quantify, certain areas where additional investments are urgently required. These include: - ix - (a) developing, equipping, and supplying a maintenance service at selected universities for scientific and technological supplies and equipment; (b) undertaking the maintenance and repair of existing physical plant and infrastructure; (c) gradually expanding third-phase universities where substantial economies of scale can be achieved; (d) establishing a management information system at each university and also nationally in NUC, for administration, budgeting and planning purposes (generally, existing computing facilities could be used); (e) in exceptional cases, constructing new teaching space or completing unfinished buildings, if this can be justified in terms of the actual utilization factors of similar spaces in the same university; (f) providing capital and technical assistance for a reorganized student loan service; (g) financing mainly Nigerian participation in subject panels designed to further rationalize offerings among universities, propose curriculum adaptations designed to improve the quality of teaching and make it more relevant to Nigerian conditions, and make other suggestions relating to research priorities; (h) financing a special research fund, to be administered on the basis of peer review, with resources available for local scholars who are interested in carrying out research potentially of use for the development of the country; and (i) financing priority library book and periodical replerishment, including the provision of the necessary foreign exchange. Follow-up Actions 33. The conclusions of this study, along with some suggestions of possible follow-up action by the Bank, have been discussed individually and collectively with Vice Chancellors, NUC and Manpower Board officials, Federal and State Government authorities. It is intended that this report be the framework for further policy discussions between the Federal Government and the Bank which might ultimately lead to the identification of a project designed to make the university system and its financing more rational, so that it becomes less of a burden on fedet-al and state budgets, while maintaining or even improving quality and effectiveness. CHAPTER 1 ESTABLISHING THE FRAMEWORK Institutions 1.1 University education in Nigeria began as a result of the Asquith and Elliot Commissions in the UK in 1945. Obviously a British system of higher education was proposed, but not so obviously, and of far greater long- term significance, was the fact that the development of detached and self- sufficient university communities, distant from existing urban centers, was recommended. It was assumed that for an effective 'education" it was neces- sary to isolate the student from his or her cultural roots. As a consequence of these views and with the opening of University College at Ibadan in 1948, a pattern was established of locating universities several miles outside existing towns, requiring the provision of road, water and electricity networks, staff housing, student hostels, clinics, schools, and transport services. The same pattern was adopted in most of the other British colonies in Africa. 1.2 The financial implications, in both the short and long term, of this particular model of university education adopted by Nigeria have been significant. In 1958 the first Vice Chancellor of Ibadan wrote: "It is salutory to realise that the expenditure in 1956/57 by University College Ibadan on the single item 'maintenance of grounds and buildings' was more than allowed by the Elliot Commission for the entire annual cost of the University College. Actual expenditures just four years after opening were more than double those forecast. While in Britain in 1956 there were 85,000 university students and in Nigeria about 563, their cost in Britain repre- sented 0.5% of government exper.iture and in Nigeria 2.02. Even now, expen- ditures on those municipal services not directly related to the process of higher education take up more than half of available budgets in Nigerian and other African universities. 1.3 Another offshoot of the British system was emphasis on the human- ities. Throughout the 1950s, University College at Ibadan, the only university-level institution in Nigeria, offered no courses in engineering, economics, geology or public administration, but did have courses in Latin, ancient Greek and ancient history. Since then there has been constant Government pressure to make the courses more relevant and manpower oriented; this started with the report of a university development commission under the chairmanship of Sir Eric Ashby. The Ashby report of 1960, which was much influenced by a manpower forecast prepared by Professor Harbison, recommended opening three more universities in Nsukka, Zaria and Lagos, the first two sponsored by their respective regional governments. Another university was established at Ife at the same time, sponsored by the western regional government. Until 1975, when all these universities were taken over by the Federal Government, the percentage of total funding provided by the Federal Government was as follows: Ibadan, 1002; Lagos, 100%; Zaria, 302 (75% from 1967); Nsukka, 30Z; and Ife, 302. The remaining funding was provided by regional (then state) governments. To this group of *older" or first-phase universities, the University of Benin, founded in 1970 as an institute of technology and upgraded in 1972, is conventionally added. Another result of the Ashby report was the establishment of the National Manpower Board and the - 2 - National Universities Commission (NUC), the latter's role being to plan, coordinate and ensure balanced development and growth of Nigerian univer- sities. Although NUC had its origins in the British university grants commission (UGC), which was also found in East Africa and India, unlike a UGC it was, until 1974, a non-st&tutory body with no final authority for exer- cising control over the financial policies and procedures of the universities and consequently over the pattern of course offerings. This was partly due to higher education being a concurrent activity with responsibility shared between the federal and the regional or state governments. 1.4 With the rapidly increasing oil revenues in the early 1970s and the increased dependence of the states in 1974 and 1975 the Federal Government undertook a series of measures to strengthen the planning process: higher education was placed on the exclusive federal list, the universities at Ife, Neukka, Zaria and Benin were taken over, and NUC was re-established as a statutory body with its own bank account. Among the Commission's new func- tions was the preparation of periodic master plans for balanced and coordi- nated development of universities in Nigeria, including the programs to be followed by iWividual universities, recommendations for the establishment and location or new universities, and recommendations for the establishment of new faculties or postgraduate programs in existing universities. As part of the process of stret.gthening federal control over the universities (four of which had been at least partly financed by regional governments), two additional organizations were established. The first was the Nigerian Student Loan Board (NSLB), a statutory body set up in 1972 to provide loans to Nigerians studying in local universities who did not have a scholarship (in 1976 the Board's functions were extended to cover Nigerians studying overseas). The second was the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB), established in 1978 and responsible for coordinating university admission applications and for conducting a special matriculation examination. Thus, at least theoretically, by 1978 the mechanisms for a well-plarned university system existed: the National Manpower Board estimated demand; JAMB tried to ensure that student intakes took place in the required fields; NUC ensured that the needed federal financing was provided, at least for priority areas; and NSLB ensured that students without scholarships would not be prevented from benefiting from a university education because of their family's economic status. 1.5 However, with the Nigerian economy flush with inflated oil revenues after 1973, this planning structure was partly ignored, as demonstrated by the simultaneous opening of four more universities in 1975 (Sokoto, Maiduguri, Jos and Calabar), and three university colleges (Ilorin, Port- Harcourt and Kano), which also were declared to be universities a year later. These developments did not allow time for NUC to develop coordinated academic plans; on the contrary, in many cases the establishment of individual faculties such as medicine, engineering and agriculture, was not based on the available technical advice. The high-cost pattern of having self-contained communities, far from the realities of Nigerian culture, continued with these new universities; in particular, the sites had to be a minimum of 10,000 acres, and were allowed to be situated up to 20 miles from an existing urban center. 1.6 The third phase of university expansion took place during the federal civilian government from 1979 to 1983. This began with the announced - 3 - intention to develop seven more Federal Universities of Technology (FUTs); this number was significant in that it ensured that each state would have a deral university located within it. Those at Bauchi, Makurdi and Owerri were established in 1980, at Yola and Akure in 1981, and at Abeokuta and Minna in 1983. Initial planning of a National Open University also occurred during this period. In addition to these direct initiatives in university education, the Federal Government in 1979 again placed higher education on the concurrent list, making it a shared federal-state responsibility. Between 1980 and 1983, eight states in the southern part of the country established universities, all of which continue to function today. Following a Supreme Court ruling, several proposals to establish private universities were also developed and at least one was established and another 39 applica- tions received. 1.7 This overwhelming momentum in university development, which took place in a largely unplanned and uncoordinated way, slowed down following the military coup of 1983 and the decline in oil revenues. The Open University project was postponed, private universities were banned by decree, and four of the seven universities of technology were merged with existing univer- sities in an apparent effort to reduce administrative costs and control the level of course diversification. Holding the line on this proved difficult and the status of the four amalgamated FUTs has again been raised to that of independent universities -- two of them agricultural universities. Also, the Open University project has partly come to life again as the university for the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja. With these provisos, since 1983 the growth in the number of federal and state higher educational institutions seems to have stabilized. It is likely that for at least the next 5-10 years no more universities will be established. 1.8 In entering into this period of consolidation, Nigeria finds itself with a system of higher education comprising 28 universities plus Abuja, and a structure of supporting institutions that includes the National Manpower Board, National Universities Commission, Nigerian Student Loan Board, and Joint Admissiona Matriculation Board. More than in any other country in sub- Saharan Africa, the structures exist in Nigeria that could provide for a rational and effective development of university education. It is only the heritage of the self-contained university community concept and some of the costly practices of the oil boom years that keep this system from also becoming cost effective. However, the Government already has taken steps to prevent repetition of some of the extravagances of the oil boom years, with, for example, the development of greatly simplified physical planning norms. Enrollments 1.9 The table below shows the growth of enrollments in federal univer- sities. From the mid-sixties to the mid-eighties, enrollments doubled every four to five years. - 4 - Table 1 Enrollments in Federal Universities, 1960/51-1985/86 Year Enrollment Year Enrollment 1960-61 1,395 1980-81 69,725 1964-65 6,719 1981-82 82,952 1968-69 8,588 1982-83 97,631 1972-73 20,889 1983-84 103,913 1976-77 39,732 1984-85 111,513 1985-86 110,443 Sourcet 1960/61-1982/83, Enaohwo (1985), Table 1. 1983/84, 1984/85, 1985/86, National University Commission, Annual Reports and unpublished tables. Of the 110,443 students in 1985/86, 7.5% were in sub-degree/remedial programs, 82.8Z in first degree programs, and 9.7? at the postgraduate level. National ?olicy toward postgraduate studies is to encourage the older univer- sities 4o aim for 25% of their enrollments at that level. In 1984/85, post- gradute enrollments, as a percentage of total enrollments in degree prZ;.ams, were% Ibadan, 25; Zaria, 15; Lagos, 13; Jos, 12; Nsukka, 12; Calabar, 8; Ilorin, 6; and Sokoto, 3. 1.10 For some years, the NUC admissions policy has been to aim for a 60:40 science/arts ratio. Partly as a result of widespread remedial courses for science students, a great deal of progress has been made; e.g., for all universities in 1984/85, this ratio averaged 43:57. Between universities there are significant variations, ranging from 17:83 in Sokoto to 54:46 in Ibadan. 1.11 For the medium term, the Government plans to restrict enrollment growth to 2.5% a year in those universities with over 10,000 students, Currently the oldest six universities exceed this level, averaging 12,015 each, even though intakes fell (from 23,812 in 1980/81 to 21,826 in 1985/86), whereas the seven second-phase universities have enrollments well below, averaging only 4,137 students although intakes rose (from 6,238 in 1980/81 to 11,674 in 1985/86). Intakes to these universities are planned to rise by 10% a year. Technological universities are to increase their enrollments at 15? p.a. until an economic scale of operation is reached. 1.12 The fastest-growing sector of all is the state universities, which increased enrollments from 8,143 in 1983/84 to 14,772 in 1984/85. It should be noted, however, that these universities also offer sub-degree courses and that they cater to students from the most educationally advanced southern states. 1.13 Three main issues in enrollment policy need to be resolved: first, the minimum size for a university to have fully benefitted from economies of scale; second, the extent to which universities should be involved in - 5 - postgraduate studies; and third, the extent to which they should be involved in pre-university studies. Academic Staff 1.14 Overall, the rapid expansion of university enrollments has been matched by increases in academic staff. As there is no national university teaching service, however, it could easily be the case that while one univer- sity might be overstaffed, at the same time another university in the same area faces staff shortages. 1.15 The continuing dependence on expatriates is another cause for concern. With the substantial depreciation of the Naira since September 1986, many expatriate teachers are expected to resign their posts and leave the country, as the foreign currency value of their remittances expressed in home currencies has been greatly reduced. 1.16 The following table shows that the percentage of total faculty in Nigeria made up of expatriates has fallen continuously since 1965, although the absolute numbers remain highs Table 2 Teaching Staff in Niterian Federal Universities, 1965166-1984185 1965 1968 1971 1974 1977 1981 1982 1983 1984 Total Faculty 1,208 1,288 2,245 3,560 5,190 7,980 8,286 8,829 8,770 Number of Expatriates 640 540 606 890 1,142 1,576 1,823 1,767 1,579 Percentage of Expatriates 53 42 27 25 22 20 22 20 18 Sources Enaohwo (1985), Table IV; Ajayi (1984), p. 2111. NUC Annual Report, 1983-84, and unpublished records. Some of the second-phase universities remain highly dependent on expatriates; e.g., at Sokoto they comprise 37% of the total academic staff and 74% of the professorial and senior lecturer categories. In three other second-phase universities -- Jos, Kano and Maiduguri -- more than 30% of the total academic staff and over 50% of the professorial and senior lecturer grades are expatriates. Conversely, the first-phase universities tend to have less than 10% of their academic staff composed of expatriates. There is consider- able variation by subject and, surprisingly, the highest proportion of expatriates is in law, with 29%. 1.17 The overall student/teaching staff ratio of 11.9:1 and the depart- mental ratios being achieved are in most cases consistent with the norms established by NUC. Only in one or two departments are the ratios much lower than the norms; e.g., in veterinary medicine the actual ratio is 4.1st, compared with the norm of 10:1. Staff/student contact of 8-12 hours per week appears to be low, considering that few funds are available to support any research effort. Such low contact hours can be justified only if staff are deeply involved in research or other significant academic activitie*, 1.18 Apart from Ibadan where over 60% of the academic staff are profes- sors and senior lecturers, most of the other universities have less staff in these higher grades than allowed by NUC. Courses 1.19 One of the impressions gained from studying the Nigerian university system is that each institution attempts to be involved in the whole range of university education. Almost all Nigerian universities offer courses in medicine, agriculture and engineering. By their nature, these are the most expensive for a university to provide, and are even more so since enrollments in these courses at the never Nigerian universities are well below an economically effective level. Financing 1.20 Almost 902 of university enrollments are at the federal univer- sities, and over 90% of unive:sity budgets come from the Federal Government. Despite a 502 increase in enrollments between 1981 and 1987, and considerable inflation over the same period, federal recurrent budgetary allocations in 1987 were lower than in 1981, and capital allocations were much lower. Consequently the universities have begun to experience a severe shortage of resources for anything other than essential salary expenditures. Circum- stances are therefore becoming favorable for a dialogue on ways to make higher education more cost effective and on increasing the share of total expenditures to be met by students and their guardians. 1.21 Nigeria has already made considerable progress in obtaining a financial contribution from university students. All now pay the full cost of their food, a significant rent for a bed in a hostel, and the cost of all their books, while a decreasing proportion receive scholarships. Moreover, postgraduate students pay a tuition fee, and students in state universities pay a range of fees and levies. It is largely the high cost of the self- contained community nature of Nigerian universities that prevents these sub- stantial student contributions from covering a significant proportion of total university costs. 1.22 It should also be noted that although allocations are made to universities on the basis of a whole series of norms, the funds are provided as a block grant, with virtually no control over how they are used. Hence, several universities have been holding sizable bank balances through savings from previous years' allocations. NUC as a statutory body also holds sizable bank balances of Government grants not yet transferred to the universities. The Future 1.23 With the 20 autonomous federal universities and the eight state universities, as well as NUC, NSLB, JAMB and the National Manpower Board, the - 7 - institutional structure of university education seems more or less settled, apart from the creation of a university at the new capital of Abuja. It is likely that enrollment growth at the federal universities will stabilize around 52-5.52 a year, with additional increases to be taken up by state universities, which will try to cover an increasing propt,rtion of their expenditures from fees. 1.24 The next 5 to 10 year period is likely to be a one of consolidation where financial constraints will necessitate further efforts to rationalize university offerings and to develop costing norms more consistent with the country's economic situation than are the current norms. It may also be a period during which attempts will be made to break away from the existing pattern of Pelf-contained university communities and to ensure that both students and staff assume an increasing proportion of the real costs of the services provided on campus. CHAPTER 2 INDICATORS OF EFFICIENCY OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM 2.1 Before progressing to the main theme of this study -- the costs and financing of university education in Nigeria -- it is useful first to analyze some of the main factors that affect the efficiency of universities. These includet (a) student intake requirements and selectivity ratios (b) staffing patterns (c) course offerings (d) relationship between school system and univarsities and various indicators of efficiency, such ass (e) student wastage (f) examination pass rates (g) employment and unemployment rates of graduates (dealt with in Chapter 3). Student Intake Requirements and Characteristics 2.2 Until 1977, a General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (A Level) pass was required for admission to a university. Because of the limited number of students with an A Level pass (especially those from the northern part of the country), several universities decided to admit students with an Ordinary Level (0 Level) pass and conduct special basic studies or remedial courses to raise the level of these students sufficiently for them to participate in degree programs. However, with the opening of the second wave of universities in 1976 it was realized that there was no way that - 8 - sufficient numbers of A Level candidates would be available for entry; there- fore, the intake requirement was lowered from A Level to 0 Level, and all university courses were lengthened by one year to at least four years. 2.3 Most universities in Nigeria (with the exception of Ahmadu Bello, Kano, and the faculties of law at Lagos and Ibadan) now admit most of their students into first degree programs on the basis of results in the Joint Matriculation Examination (JME). Students must also have the required 0 Level or equivalent results, and must be at least 18 years old. Students with an A Level pass are still admitted directly without taking the JME and are also allowed to skip the first year of the university course. 2.4 Whether students are admitted on the basis of the JME, a univer- sity's own entrance examination or through direct entry, all applications are supposed to pass through JAMB. In comparing actual intakes with the figures approved by JAMB, however, there is evidence that some universities are admitting candidates not approved by JAMB. This points to the existence of a parallel, unofficial admissions procedure. 2.5 There are wide variations in the JME pass rates required for admis- sion, depending on the home state, the subject, and the university chosen by the prospective candidate. In all decisions related to student intakes, the federal character of Nigeria has to be taken into account. In order to main- tain the federal character of universities, in 1981 the Government decreed that a quota system be used for admission to the federal universities. The quota applied depends on whether the university is first generation (founded before 1975), second generation (founded after 1975 but before 1980), or third generation (federal universities of technology founded after 1980). 2.6 According to the quota system, the first generation universities must admit 40% of their students on merit from all 21 states, 30? from the locality of the university, 20% from the 12 educationally less developed states (Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Gongola, Kaduna, Kano, Lagos, Niger, Plateau, Rivers and Sokoto), and 10% at the discretion of the univer- sity. The quotas for the second generation universities vary from those of the first generation in that 30% of their students (as against 40?) are to be admitted on merit from all 21 states, and 30% (as against 20%) from the educationally less developed states. For the third generation universities, quotas hardly operate as 20% of the students are from the locality of the university and 80% are admitted at its discretion. With the introduction of the quota system, NUC was directed to develop a system of inducements and penalties to ensure that the universities comply with the decree. 2.7 State universities are allowed to set their own quotas, but still must give some weight to the federal character of Nigeria. Usually 60? to 70? of their students come from the locality of the university, and 10? to 20? represent the federal character. 2.8 In the last year for which figures are available (1985/86), JAMB received 212,114 applications for entry into first degree programs. A total of 36,826 applied for direct entry and the remaining 175,288 took the JME. The latter were drawn from 514,890 secondary scbool students who took GCE 0 Level in May/June 1985; of these applicants only 30,809, or 14.5?, were admitted. These figures show that there is a huge unfulfilled demand for - 9 - higher education in Nigeria, and thus suggest there is a very good possi- bility for increased sharing by students in the financing of their higher education. However, this excess demand varies widely among the universities. 2.9 Applicants from the 12 educationally disadvantaged states have almost double the chance of being admitted to a un*versity as those from the more advanced states. For example, in 1985/86 JAMB received 45,605 appli- cants from the less developed states and admitted 10,391 or 23%, whereas it received 165,688 applicants from the more developed states and admitted 20,418 or only 121. The difference in selectivity percentages between states is even more marked, with, for example, 59.41 of applicants from Sokoto being admitted to a university as compared with less than 101 from Imo and Rivers States. Between universities there are likewise wide differences, with some of the federal universities of technology admitting over 80% of applicants (Minna admitting 86.52), whereas Port Harcourt University admits only 4.71 (see Annex Table A-1). These wide differences in selectivity ratios between universities, and the consequent wide differences in the intake qualifica- tions of students in different universities, make the planning of a system of higher education more difficult than it might otherwise be. 2.10 There are also wide differences between the proportion of candi- dates selected in the various subjects. Table 3 below tabulates these differences. Table 3 Applications and Actual Intakes by Faculty for First Dearee Programs, 1985/86 Actual Faculty Applications Intakes Selectivity No. z No. 1 2 Agriculture 7,920 3.8 1,386 4.5 17.5 Arts/Humanities 26,046 12.3 3,998 12.9 15.4 Business Administration 29,289 13.8 1,596 5.2 6.1 Education 29,309 13.8 5,656 18.3 19.3 Eng./Tech. & Environ. Studies 18,335 8.6 3,764 12.2 20.9 Law 38,171 18.0 2,477 8.0 6.5 Medical & Health Sciences 29,780 14.0 2,254 7.3 7.6 Science 9,525 4.5 5,213 16.8 54.7 Social Studies 23,739 11.2 4,622 14.9 19.5 Total 212,114 100.0 30,966 100.0 14.6 Two interesting comparisons stand out in this tables the immense popularity of law and low percentage of candidates selected, compared with the very low popularity of science and continuing high percentage of candidates selected, despite employment as a science teacher being one of the few assured openings - 10 - presently available to graduates. Research needs to be done to identify why some fields of studies are popular and others less so. Equally important, an effective guidance system in the secondary schools would help students select more appropriate subject areas where their chances for admission to a univer- sity would be greater. 2.11 For several years now the Government has given NUC responsibility for increasing the percentage of total candidates admitted into the science disciplines, so that eventually 60Z of university students would be enrolled in science programs. Despite the greater ease of gaining science places, the proportion of applicants and admissions to science programs has not changed much over the past 7 or 8 years, as Table 4 below demonstrates; in fact, the number of science-based applications has been falling since 1982/83. Table 4 Applications and Actual Admissions for Science and Non-Science Based Courses Science Based Non-Science Based Actual % Actual I Year Applications Admissions Selected Applications Admissions Selected 1979/80 39,263 6,251 15.9 77,774 8,961 11.5 1980/81 57,207 8,359 14.6 96,020 12,070 10.6 1981/82 56,877 8,748 15.4 113,828 13,712 12.1 1982/83 64,322 4,128 6.4 140,843 12,512 8.1 1983/84 62,105 7,910 12.7 129,478 12,286 9.5 1984/85 60,612 10,573 17.4 140,528 13.974 9.9 1979-1985 340,386 45,969 13.4 698,471 73,515 10.5 2.12 Currently, three heterogeneous types of students are admitted into undergraduate programst first, the 0 Level students who have passed the JME; second, the direct entry A Level students; and third, some students without a sufficiently high 0 Level pass, who are admitted into special preparatory courses. The study team recommends that universities discontinue the prepa- ratory courses, as their unit costs are much higher than those of even the most expensive secondary schools. In 1988/89 a fourth type of student will begin to be admitted -- those who have passed through junior secondary school and who will take a new examination after 12th grade, somewhere between the current 0 Level and A Level. Within four or five years this new intake group should replace all others, and by 1992/93 only those who have passed this new secondary leaving examination will be admitted. Staffina Patterns 2.13 One of the more serious difficulties in planning the effective use of resources in Nigerian universities is the lack of any national university teaching service or even a common system of transferable health, pension and other benefits. Staff cannot transfer easily from one university to another while maintaining their retirement and other benefits; hence, it is quite common to find one university overstaffed with a certain category and type of - 11 - staff, while another university lacks exactly the same type of staff (this can be seen in Table 6). 2.14 For many years NUC has been trying, with its staffing norm, to ensure a certain standardization of student/staff ratios. In overall terms, the university system has been making some progress, as can be seen in Anne% Table A-4 and in the table below. These norms are currently in the process of biing substantially revised. However, these average figures hide a wide range of ratios between universities. Table 6 below shows the number of universities with at least 10Z more than or 10% less than the NUC standard for the particular faculty. Table 5 Actual Mean Student/Teacher Ratios by Faculty, 1984-85 Compared with NUC Parameters Student/Teacher Student/Teacher Ratios Ratios Discipline Actual MUG Discipline Actual NUG Education 25.5 25 Environmental Administration 25.3 15 Science 14.4 10 Arts 11.2 15 Pharmacy 9.3 10 Law 31.8 15 Sciences 8.0 10 Social Science 14.7 15 Vet. Medicine 4.1 10 Engineering 10.7 10 Medicine 6.4 7 Agriculture 10.8 10 Source: NUC records. * 12 - Table 6 Status of Student/Teacher Ratios by Faculty All Universities 11. 1985/86 No. of Universities with Given No. of Universities with Faculty Faculty Designated Status 21 L A H Administration/ Management 8 2 1 5 Agriculture 14 7 1 6 Arts/Humanities 17 11 4 2 Education 20 13 5 2 Earth & Mineral Science 2 1 1 - Engineering/ Technology 15 5 1 9 Environmental Design 9 2 - 7 Human Medicine/ H. Science 14 6 3 5 Law 15 1 2 12 Natural Science 22 14 3 5 Pharmacy 5 2 1 2 Social Science 15 5 1 9 Vet. Medicine 5 5 - - 1/ Excludes Imo State University, for which data were unavailable. 2/ L - More than 10% below norm; A - Acceptable Student/Teacher ratio; H- More than 10 above norm. 2.15 In 1985/86 the overall student/teacher ratio in the 16 federal universities (these are now 20) ranged from a low of 8.4:1 at Minna to a high of 15.9:1 at Ilorin. Similar figures for the state universities show a range from 8.9:1 at Ogun to 17.9:1 at Ondo. 2.16 In addition to the overall student/teaching staff *tio, NUC has also established norms relating to the breakdown of staff amdhg different categories. The current situation is summarized in Annex Table A-5 and in Table 7 below. - 13 - Table 7 Breakdown of Academic Staff by Catenory (percent) 1985186 Actual NUC High Low Academic Staff Category Norm Averaie (Ibadan) (Sokoto) Professorial Grades 20 15 22.3 11 Senior Lecturer and Reader Grades 25 23 31.8 11 Other Academic Staff 55 62 45.9 78 Kano and Minna have less than 10% of teaching staff in the professorial grades, and 65Z or more at the lecturer grade or below. Also, as mentioned in Chapter 1 (pars 1.16), in the northern and newer universities expatriates make up a high proportion of the higher grades of teaching staff, and there- fore relatively few Nigerians are in the professorial and senior lecturer grades in those universities. If transfers of staff between universities could be made easier, there not only would be enhanced promotion possibi- lities for staff in the older universities, but also less dependence on expatriate teaching staff in the northern and never institutions. 2.17 According to NUC guidelines, there should be only one senior administrative staff member for every five academic staff. Currently, in overall terms, there are three times as many of these administrative staff as there should be. Again there are wide ranges in this parameter, with some universities having more administrative than academic staff (e.g., Overri) while others, such as Zaria and Maiduguri, are close to the norm. Certainly, most universities are overstaffed with administrative personnel, and procedures to ensure phased reductions are now required. Another NUC norm is one technician for every three or four university teachers in scientific and related disciplines. Overall, across all the universities, there are more than twice the number of technical staff allowed by NUC. Certainly, if the NUC parameters are to be taken seriously, attention needs to be given to devising some method of enforcement. 2.18 Until 1954-55, NUC parameters allowed one junior non-academic staff member (messengers, janitors, drivers, cooks, etc.) for every two students. Following the abolition of subsidized meals this was changed, so that now such junior staff must not exceed 30% of enrollments. In overall terms, and in contrast to the norms for administrators and technicians, this norm is being met, which suggests that it is possible to reduce staff numbers, so long as there is sufficient pressure on university authorities to do so. Courses 2.19 The unplanned growth in university expansion intensified in 1975, when the original six universities ballooned to 13. Funds were readily available then at the height of the oil boom. Exercising their autonomy, the universities started new programs of study, often duplicating those already in existence, and proceeded to admit students with less than due regard to realistic projections of manpower needs or operational capacity. Then followed the expansion of federal universities to 20 in the early 1980s. By - 14 - 1979, individual states were once again empowered to set up their own univer- sities, with the result that between 1979 and 1984 eigtt state universities were established. 2.20 New faculties and courses continue to open, often without due regard to national and manpower needs. Some of the universities that concen- trate on science and technology have added courses in law, social studies, and business education to their degree programs. The result (as shown in Annex Table A-8) is that the 23 universities for which data are available have 22 natural science, 20 education, 17 arts/humanities, 15 law, engineering/technology and social science, 14 agriculture, and 14 human medicine and health science faculties. In total, first generation univer- sities offer between 53 and 93 degree programs; second generadion, 31 to 68; universities of technology, 12 to 23; and state universities, 13 to 35. 2.21 An interesting way to portray the relatively high degree of diver- sification in Nigerian universities is to compare their activities with those in some of the more recently established English universities. This is done in Table 8 below. The course omissions among the English universities suggest the impact of central planning which takes into account facilities in the rest of the university system. It is also interesting to note that the subject areas offered the least frequently in English universities are those, such as medicine, agriculture and engineering, which are the most expensive to provide. Table 8 Diversification of Academic Programs in Some Niaerian and English Universities Sublect Group Ife Zaria Ilorin Maiduguri Sussex Warwick York East Analia Education + + + + + + + + Medicine + + + + - - Engineering + + + + + - - Agriculture & related + + + + - - - Science + + + + + + + + Social & Business Studies + + + + + + + + Architecture + + - - - - + - Language & Literature + + + + + + + + Other Arts + + + + + + + + Sources Odaleye (1985), Table IX, plu4 NUC reports and personal communications. 2.22 Given the proliferation of courses that has already occurred, it would be sensible, particularly for postgraduate programs, to select * 15 - particular universities as centers of excellence in certain fields and to limit the opening of new courses at all except those centers. Overseas Studies 2.23 Until 1983, the Government encouraged Nigerians to study overseas, with NSLB loans, federal scholarships, and unrestrictea access to foreign exchange for private students. In 1981 it was estimated that, out of a total of 125,000 Nigerians studying abroad, 26,863 were enrolled in first degree or postgraduate courses, as compared with 61,053 in Nigerian universities for that year. In 1983 the Government took steps to stem the flow of Nigerian students overseas by discontinuing federal scholarships, not approving foreign exchange allocations for new students, and allocating very few NSLB loans. With the depreciation of the Naira since 1986, the cost of overseas studies has increased severalfold, and therefore the number of students going abroad is likely to be further restricted. Certainly, given the wide range of courses available at Nigerian universities, there can no longer be strong justification for any program of overseas studies in excess of the 1,116 students currently financed through foreign governmental scholarships. Even these scholarships need to be clearly focused on high-priority fields. Nevertheless, so long as the value of the Naira continues to be determined by the market, foreign exchange should be made available for private students wanting to study abroad. Universities and the School System 2.24 We have already discussed the problems in the university system caused by the different qualifications of students entering university. A further problem is the impact that university intake requirements have on the secondary school curriculum, and-ultimately on what is taught in primary schools. The intake requirements of the approximately 31,000 students who enter university (out of 212,000 applicants) determine what is taught to over half a million students in the last grade of secondary school and to several million in each grade of primary school. This is a case of *the tail wagging the dog." 2.25 Another phenomenon hard to justify is that the percentage of total recurrent expenditures recovered from students at universities is lower than that at any other level or type of education, as shown in Table 9 below. - 16 - Table 9 Gross Cost Recovery by Levels of Nigerian Educational System (1985) As Percent Gross Cost As Percent of of Total Recovery Recurrent Gross Cost Educational Institutions Naira '000 Expenditures Recovery Primary 281,629,565 30 46.1 Secondary State Institutions 265,579,267 40 43 Federal Government Colleges 8,340,960 20 1.4 Post Secondary Federal Universities 42,782,000 9 4 State Universities 4,500,000 16 1 Polytechnics (State & Federal) 8,625,000 10 1 Federal Schools of Arts & Sciences 1,454,250 18 0.2 Federal Colleges of Education 2,014,320 8 0.3 State Advanced Teachers College 17,041,050 21 3 Total 631,966,412 27 100 Source: Benson, 1985 N.B. These estimates do not include either voluntary contributions of parents, or indirect expenses such as books, pens, uniforms, and transport. With parents expected to bear a high proportion of primary and secondary school operating costs, at the higher education levels, where private benefits can be significant, a much lower proportion of total costs borne by students is not justified. Since the demand for university places is so high, there is a possibility of significantly increasing cost recovery at the higher education level. Internal Efficiency of Universities 2.26 Generally speaking, those universities where competition for places is the highest have the lowest rutes of dropout and the best examination pass rates. Dropout rates at the first-phase universities are claimed to be insignificant -- 1.5% p.a. at the University of Benin and 1.0% p.a. at the University of Lagos. At the other extreme, in the School of General Studies at Kano University, where entry requirements are low, dropout rates over the past three years have been 10?, 27.5% and 13%, respectively. 2.27 There is some evidence to suggest that considerable numbers of students, especially in the science-based subjects, do not complete their degrees in the required number of years. The percentages of the cohort which - 17 - entered the University of Port Harcourt in 1980/81 and completed their studies in the standard th.me are shown below. Social Facultyt Humanities Sciences Education Science Engineering Medicine Completion Zs 93 97 94 81 70 37 (standard time) 2.28 In the newest universities, where a high proportion of applicants are admitted, completion rates are very low. For example, at PUT Overri, out of the 225 students admitted in 1981/82, only 99 have taken the final exami- nation and 66 passed by 1985. At Rivers State University of Technology, the situation is similar, with only 362 of those admitted to four-year degree programs in 1981 completing in 1985. 2.29 Currently, apart from a limited use of external examiners, there is no system to ensure that relatively uniform standards are maintained across universities. To ensure greater uniformity, in February 1987 the Federal Minister of Education announced that 13 accreditation panels would be set up for the country's universities under NUC. The preliminary reports of these panels have been completed. 2.30 The output of graduates from Nigerian universities has increased at a high rate over recent years. For example, between 1980/81 and 1984/85 the output of first degree graduates increased by 109Z, from 9,662 to 20,236. Over the same period, higher degree output nearly tripled, from 1,118 to 2,977. 2.31 Even in normal times it might be difficult for the economy (largely the public sector) to gainfully absorb such an increase in graduate output, but this increase has taken place at a time when public sector employment opportunities have been declining and vacant teaching positions (except in the science disciplines) have all but disappeared. This difficulty in finding employment has been one of the factors leading to a large increase (572 between 1982 and 1984) in enrollments in postgraduate courses. However, prolonging the period of study promises to compound the problem by producing unemployed and frustrated postgraduates. Again, this is a strong argument for developing an effective career guidance system, as well as for charging meaningful fees for postgraduate studies so that they no longer are considered a free good. Universities and the Larger Society 2.32 There are three main ways universities can relate to the larger society: by producing graduates who can be gainfully and productively employed, by carrying out socially productive services, and by undertaking ra-0earch that is relevant and useful in dealing with pressing development concerns. 2.33 All of the first-phase and many of the second-phase universities support development and activity in the larger society through their public service units. Examples of these are the Correspondence and Open Studies Unit (COSIT) in the University of Lagos, the Institute of Public - 18 - Administration and Extension Services at the University of Benin, and the Extra Mural Studies Department at the University of Nigeria. All are designed to provide services to people outside the university system; however, as university budgets have been cut in recent years these OperipheralO activities seem.to have suffered the most. Hence, many of these public service units are operating well below capacity. In addition, most universities operate their own consultancy services, but because of bureaucratic problems with processing requests, plus a lack of clarity as to how consultancy fees should be divided (between the researcher, his department, and the university), these have not yet proved very successful. 2.34 Finally, almost all universities have their own organized research units, such as the Center for Energy Research and Development at the University of Ife, the Human Resources Research Unit at the University of Lagos, and the Sugar Research Unit at the University of Ilorin. Many of these centers have done some useful work in the past; but as with the public service units, over the past few years they have been starved for funds and consequently their activities have come almost to a halt. Outside these organized research units very little research takes place, and what does has less to do with relevance to Nigerian society than to the possibility of finding a sponsor. 2.35 The most well known of the Nigerian social science research instt- tutions, NIESR at Ibadan, does not fall under any university, but under the Federal Ministry of National Planning. Its staff are paid according to government salary scales, which are about 13Z less than university salaries. 2.36 Some mechanism needs to be developed that would enable individual university staff to obtain research grants to carry out potentially useful research, either through organized research units or privately. A research fund, administered by university staff themselves in accordance with estab- lished criteria, could be established, perhaps under one of the Nigerian Research Councils or the Committee of Vice Chancellors. Inefficient Use of Capital Funds 2.37 The high capital costs caused by the university model adopted by Nigeria -- self-contained university communities up to 20 miles from urban centers, with at least 10,000 acres of land (para 1.5) -- are emphasized in Chapter 1. Even within this high cost model there is considerable waste of resources; for example, an estimated N1.2 billion worth of work remains on unfinished infrastructural and institutional projects. Even more wasteful is the pattern of starting to build a university on a particular campus and then, after considerable development has taken place, rejecting the original site and restarting development work on a new site, often distant from the original campus. This practice was observed by the study team at many universities (e.g., Bendel State and Benin). 2.38 The provision of physical facilities is where there has been the most waste of resources provided to universities, even though up to 1984 buildings were supposed to be constructed in accordance with NUCON (consultants to NUC) norms. However, there was no way to ensure that these norms would be adhered to, because until 1984 the universities did not have to submit audited accounts on the use of the capital funds they received from - 19 - NUC. Many universities saved a great deal of money from their capital grants over the period 1975-1981 and have been using these funds to complete projects that were never approved in the first place, and in some cases to conduct teaching programs not approved by NUC. 2.39 Currently, over 60% of the capital investments at federal universi- ties is devoted to housing, utilities and other non-teaching infrastructure. Generally, more of these infrastructural facilities are being provided than at many European universities; for example, free primary and secondary schooling is provided for the children of staff and utilities are provided free or at nominal charge. Of course, not only university staff receive this type of b'nefit, as an expectation of subsidized housing and services per- meates the entire salaried workforce. Certainly, as students have been expected over the past two years to contribute toward their accommodations, as well as pay the full cost of their meals, it is important to ensure that university staff contribute to the cost of services they receive without being treatid much differently than similar occupational groups. Some steps are being taken in this direction, as NUC has already decided it will no longer subsidize secondary schools run by universities. 2.40 Officially, NUC seems to be moving away from the traditional pattern of fully residential campuses. According to the new norms, 25% of senior university staff and 33% of students should be housed. It can be seen from Artex Table A-11 that even according to the official returns of the universities (which underestimate the actual situation) most of them have over 502 of their students in hostels and in actual terms probably nearer 100%. For example, at the University of Benin, officially there were 2,620 hostel places, but the university had fitted 5,940 beds in those places. Moreover, in most of the 1,320 rooms there were three to five squatters sharing the beds with the officially accommodated students, and thus virtually all the 9,600 students were housed. Currently, although on average about 25% of senior staff are housed in university-owned units, almost the same number are housed in units rented at considerable expense by the universities, thus apparently circumventing the NUC norm (see Annex Table A-10). 2.41 Given the concept of fully residential universities, one of the most successful innovations introduced by the Federal Goverment in recent years was to discontinue institutional food service for university students subsidized by the Government and to replace it with a system of small contractors selling local African food to students at any time of the day or evening. Because of the use of local food, plus competition among the contractors, the cost of this system (paid entirely by students) at about N4 per student per day is half the cost when the universities were providing the food. 2.42 With increased budgetary restrictions and the depreciation of the Naira, the provision of scientific and other materials has had to be severely curtailed. The universities are still living off of their excess purchases made during the oil boom years, but those supplies will soon be exhausted. The situation with libraries is perhaps even more serious. Already the universities have drastically reduced journal subscriptions; one university indicated that, with the currency depreciation, procurement of even a reduced number of journals uses up its entire allocation for libraries. Some - 20 - statistics for libraries at federal universities are included in Annex Table A-12. This problem of lack of replenishment of library stocks is exacerbated by the fact that fewer students are now able to buy books for their private use than was the case a few years ago. Enrollment Growth - A Postscript 2.43 Enrollments at the federal institutions which stood at 7,700 in 1965/66 almost doubled every five years, rising to 14,000 in 1970/71, 27,000 in 1974/75, 53,000 in 1979/80, and 111,513 in 1984/85. An additional 14,772 at the eight state universities brought the grand total to 126,285 at all 24 universities in 1984/85. However, according to the Human Resources Research Unit, while this enrollment increase has been accompanied by some improve- ments in equity, with the proportion of female students increasing from 17% to 23% and the number (though not the proportion) of students from disad- vantaged states also increasing, generally this expansion has not had a progressive social impact. According to the same source, a greater pro- portion of students now come from the south than was the case 20 years ago; a greater proportion also come from higher income groups and from younger age groups, and a smaller proportion are married. 2.44 Given the existing state of the economy, expansion of enrollments can no longer be justified on the basis of manpower demand, but only on grounds of social justice. It is, however, the lower socioeconomic groups, women and northerners whose effective demand is the least. Since state universities have been established only in the southern states, and since fees are charged at those universities, they are unlikely to cater to the more deprived groups. Any proposal to increase cost sharing will then have to take into account the need to increase enrollment of deprived groups, including those within advantaged states. CHAPTER 3 THE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE LABOR MARKET 3.1 Previous hith demand. Thanks to the work of the well-staffed and active National Manpower Board, it is possible to see how demand for university graduates in Nigeria has changed. Certainly their employment prospects today differ substantially from those of the immediate past. Surveys in 1972 and 1973 on the employment of new graduates demonstrated very high levels of demand, and major studies of Nigeria's manpower requirements carried out by the Board in 1977 and 1981 recorded large numbers of vacancies for high-level manpower. While shortages appeared to be greatest in the scientific and technological occupations, with the buoyant economy of the 1970s the demands from the states to fill their expanding civil services and the increasing demand for teachers led to virtually full employment of university graduates. The 1983 Shuttle Employment Inquiry 3.2 The report on the 1983 Shuttle Employment Inquiry carried out by the National Manpower Board in 1984, was among the first ihdicators that the - 21 - situation was changing. Although overall employment in the public sector was said to have increased by roughly 3? during the previous 12 months, almost half of the private sector establishments surveyed stated that they had undergone some retrenchment, reducing staff by an average of 30%. This report by the National Manpower Board still provides the most recent overview of the structure of graduate employment in the country. As of the end of 1983, of those surveyed, - 50% were employed by the state governments - 36? were employed by the Federal Government - 14? were employed by the private sector and the pattern of recruitment during the previous 12 months was roughly similar, with - 58? employed by the state governments - 28? employed by the Federal Government - 14? employed by the private sector In the establishments surveyed, graduate recruitment was 8,486; in light of the coverage, this compared reasonably well with a total graduate and post- graduate output of 17,619 in 1982. 3.3 Even at that time, however, two aspects of the graduate labor market were already giving evidence of its potential fragility: first, it was highly dependent on the school system, which accounted for over 25? of the total openings; and second, changing conditions in the country were beginning to change manpower needs and call for different types of university graduates. As Table 10 below indicates, social science and arts graduates faced much greater difficulty in finding employment than science and, particularly, engineering graduates. Table 10 Comparison of Graduate Output and Recruitment, 1982183 Z of Total X Share of (3) Field of Study Graduate Output Graduates Recruited (2) (1) (2) (3) (4) Social Sciences 16.5 8.8 0.53 Arts 15.0 12.9 0.86 Science 10.0 12.6 1.26 Administration 6.0 3.5 0.58 Engineering and Technology 4.0 9.1 2.27 Sources NMB, 1984, p. 26. - 22 - Overall Unemployment Rates 3.4 At the time the 1983 survey was made, the overall urban unemploy- ment rate was recorded as 7.3%. It has risen since then, peaking at 11.0% in June 1986 and falling to 8.7Z by March 1987. While the overall level of unemployment has increased, so has the proportion of university graduates among the unemployed, as shown in Table 11 below. While the main unemploy- ment problem lies with secondary school leavers, the highest rate of increase is for higher education graduates. This implies that the labor market for recent graduates has become very tight. Table 11 Distribution of Male Unemployed by Educational Level (percent) Percent of Unemployed December December March Education Level 1983 1984 1987 None 8.8 10.7 10.9 Primary 22.1 32.9. 21.9 Secondary 67.7 52.4 61.2 Teaching Certificate - 1.3 0.5 Polytechnic 1.5 0.7 2.2 University 2.0 3.3 100.0 100.0 100.0 Sources: Federal Office of Statistics (1985)s Labor Force Sample Survey, 1984. Federal Office of Statistics (1987): Labor Force Survey, March 1987. Tracer Studies 3.5 The general impression of widespread unemployment among higher education graduates is corroborated by the recent work of the National Man- power Board (1986), which at the end of 1984 attempted to investigate the number who had found employment by the end of their compulsory year with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The results were depressing. Of those interviewed, jobs had been secured by only 6.72 of college of education graduates, 5.7? of polytechnic graduates, and 4.4? of university graduates. Of the university Fraduates, those who had studied law, mediciLe or education had the highest employment rates: 19?, 14% and 13?, respectively. Less than 1? of arts and science graduates had obtained employment. Those without employment were then asked to express their expectation of finding an appro- priate job over the following three months; in all, 8? thought their prospects were very good, 34% good, and 58? poor. 3.6 Twelve months later a sample of 800 of those initially surveyed were recontacted and 540 responded. Table 12 below presents a preliminary - 23 - analysis of the breakdown of these graduates' activities. One year after completing NYSC service -- i.e., two years after graduating -- only about three-fifths of the graduates had found employment while a third remained unemployed. Although some of the subject classifications are still pre- liminary (especially environmental studies), surprisingly it appears that unemployment rates for social science and arts graduates are similar to those for engineering and medical graduates and lower than for science, business studies and agriculture. Table 12 Activities of University Graduates Two Years After Graduating Further Subiect Emploved Studies Unemploved Percent Total Agriculture 12 4 12 (42) 28 Arts & Humanities 63 3 27 (29) 93 Education 29 4 13 (28) 46 Engineering 24 5 11 (27) 40 Medicine 29 3 12 (27) 44 Environmental Studies 12 4 24 (60) 40 Business Studies 36 6 25 (37) 67 Social Science 81 5 34 (28) 120 Law 9 3 1 ( 7) 13 Science 27 3 18 (37) 48 All Subjects 322 40 177 539 Percent (59.8) (7.4) (32.8) (100.0) Sources Preliminary analysis, National Manpower Board. 3.7 Compared with the findings of the earlier studies, the 1984185 sample survey showed that state authorities and the private sector had increased their importance as employers, with 62.72 of new employment being under state governments (compared with 58? in 1983), 18% under the Federal Government (compared with 281), and 182 in the private sector (compared with 14?). The public sector maintains the predominant position in employing new graduates, which means that their employment prospects are almost entirely dependent upon the federal and state governments' fiscal situation. It is obviously difficult for the public sector to continue to absorb the vast majority of a rapidly increasing output of graduates. This suggests that it is necessary not only to devote increasing attention to career guidance and employment orientation (para 2.10), but also to make curriculum changes so that new graduates may become more self-reliant and flexible, and more able to create their own occupations. Without such changes, the universities could well become little more than training centers for the public sector. - 24 - Graduate Earnings 3.8 Finally, earnings of newly employed graduates were surveyed and a wide range of starting salaries was identified, with law graduates earning 522 more than arts graduates, as shown in Table 13 below. Table 13 Initial Annual Earnings by Subiect (N) Subject 0-2,999 3,000-4,999 5,000-6,999 7,000-8,999 Average Agriculture 1 6 4 1 4,791 Arts 1 58 4 0 4,087 Education 1 19 7 2 4,672 Engineering 1 14 14 3 5,172 Medicine 0 13 13 3 5,310 Science 0 19 7 1 4,667 Social Science 8 92 17 4 4,281 Law 0 2 4 3 6,221 Weighted 4,564 Sources Preliminary analysis, National Manpower Board. Geographical Differences 3.9 If the results of this survey are typical of the entire graduate labor market, they indicate for 1984185 that while the situation had worsened it was not at a crisis point. But, over the past two years, as a result of the structural adjustment program and the deduction of state debt interest payments at source by the Federal Government, graduate employment oppor- tunities in both the private and public sectors have fallen further. Apart from the very general Labor Force Sample Surveys in 1984 and 1987 (Table 11), no more recent systematic surveys of graduate employment and unemployment have been made. Some partial evidence for mid-1986, though, corroborates a view that there are strong geographical vaiiations within the graduate labor market. This can be seen in state-by-state returns of registered unemployed made to the Federal Ministry of Labor. On the whole these returns are biased downward, since until recently, when registration was made a condition of gaining 'employment creation* work, little benefit accrued from it; none- theless, some patterns are evidents very low levels of university graduate unemployment in the far northern states (e.g., Sokoto), increasing levels in the middle belt (e.g., Kwara) and southeast (e.g., Rivers), and much higher levels in the south (e.g., Bendel) and east (e.g., Imo). This geographical variation is corroborated by evidence that in several northern states it is proving difficult to fill certain technological posts by indigenes of those states. Geographical variations are nothing new -- surpluses of high-level manpower in the southern states have existed alongside shortages and employ- ment of expatriates in the north for some time. - 25 - 3.10 High-level manpower shortages in the northern states, however, are apparently decreasing overall and becoming limited to specific skills. The Niger State Government, for example, recently stated that in the allocation of scholarships those studying medicine, agriculture, engineering, and science education will be given preference. A final, ad-hoc, indicator of the graduate labor market is the response to the country's new Technical Aid Corps Scheme for graduates to work in other African countries: there have been 14,000 applications for 250 places. National Directorate of Employment 3.11 It is likely that with the strengthening of the National Direc- torate of Employment (NDE) in 1987 there will be far greater incentives for unemployed graduates to register than was the case in the past, thereby strengthening the manpower planning data base. 3.12 In 1987, NDE had a budget of 1140 million and offices in every state. While by far the largest program of NDE is the support it gives to apprenticeship training, there are two programs specifically designed for university graduates, and in 1987 they catered for about 6,000. The first of these programs aims to get graduates to settle on the land as farmers; there is a two-week orientation, followed by intensive practical training at Farmers Training Institutes, before they are helped with loans to settle on a farm. The second program aims to help graduates set up their own small-scale enterprises; this involves an intensive 10-day training period, followed by working with consultants from commercial banks in preparing detailed plans and proposals for their enterprises and financing requirements. Finally, they have to defend their proposals with a bank. Loans of between N34,000 (with the original of the graduate diploma as security) and N50,000 (with fixed property as security) are given. Approximately 8Z of the NDE budget was devoted to these loans in 1987. 3.13 Compared with the unit costs of higher education, the unit costs of this employment-generating program seem extremely high -- around three times the total average unit cost of providing a student with a university degree. Obviously, it is going to be beyond the capacity of the Federal Government, working through NDE, to provide loans and resettlement assistance to a signi- ficant proportion of the unemployed graduates so long as the current high- cost structure is maintained. In tackling the problem of graduate unemploy- ment, it is far more a question of reforming the curriculum of degree programs, so that they help to prepare youth for the productive employment opportunities that exist, rather than adding employment orientation as a postgraduate afterthought. Rates of Return 3.14 A rough calculation (using government salary scales) shows a private rate of return of over 20Z for those university graduates who find immediate employment. Even those who take two years to find a suitable job have a private rate of return of over 122. These figures again suggest that there is a potential for increasing fees. Further analysis of the National Manpower Board's graduate imployment tracer studies (paras 3.5-3.7) could provide data for more accurate and differentiated rates of return, which - 26 - could then be of some use in determining enrollmer,, scholarship and fee policies. CHAPTER 4 UNIVERSITY BUDGETS AND OTHER FINANCIAL SOURCES Overall Education Budaets 4.1 Financial and administrative responsibility for education consti- tutionally lies with both the federal and state governments. Currently the Federal Government has direct responsibility for 89% of university enroll- ments, 232 of polytechnic enrollments, 7% of teacher training enrollments, and 1? of secondary school enrollments. The remaining part of secondary and post-secondary education falls under the responsibility of the state govern- ments, while local authorities are now responsible for primary schools, although often financially aided by the states. The central role that state governments play in education, as well as other activities, requires that they have revenues to carry them out. Since 1975, over 701 of these revenues have come from statutory grants made through the federtion account. 4.2 Table 14 below shows trends in public education expenditure. Direct Federal Government expenditures on education represented over one- third of total educational expenditures in the early 1980s, but the pro- portion appears to have fallen slightly since then and as a proportion of total federal expenditures they have definitely fallen. The decline in recurrent expenditures is from 21% in 1981 to 17% in 1986 and to a planned 14? in 1987. Federal capital expenditures on education as a proportion of total federal capital expenditures have also fallen. In addition to a declining share of total expenditure, the education budget has also declined in both current and real price terms since 1981. Unfortunately, recent data on state expenditures is patchy, and data is not available beyond 1984. 4.3 All these expenditure trends indicate that the education sector has come under severe financial pressure in the past few years and that resources even in current price terms have fallen substantially. In real terms, federal recurrent expenditures on education in 1985 were only 38? of their 1981 value and have fallen since then. * 27 - Table 14 Actual and Planned Federal State Expenditures on Education, 1981-1987, Nigetia (Naira million) Level of Government and Type of Expenditure 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 Federal Capital 602 463 297 87 85 398 139 Z of Total Federal Capital Expenditure 7 6 4 2 2 6 5 Recurrent 781 699 663 657 699 599 514 I of Total Federal Recurrent Expenditure 21 20 16 17 19 17 14 State Capital and Recurrent Expenditure 2,562 2,156 2,447 1,745 NA NA NA Federal Education Expenditure a* I of Total Federal and State Education Expenditure 35 35 26 30 NA NA NA Sourcest Federal expenditures (1981, 1982) and state expenditures (1981-84), Benson, 1985. Federal expenditures (1983, 1984, 1985, 1986), World Bank, Lagos. Federal expenditures (1987), Federal Republic of Nigeria, Consolidation Budget, 1987. Notest Federal expenditures are all actuals apart from the approved budget estimates for 1987. State expenditures are actuals for 1981 and 1982 and approved budget estimates for 1983 and 1984. University Budgets 4.4 During the 1980s, between 46Z and 622 of Federal Government educa- tion expenditures have been devoted to universities (see Annex Table A-13). While the limited amount of data on state and local government expenditures makes comparisons between the various levels of education difficult, it would appear that between 1981 and 1984 the universities' share of total federal and state education expenditures (capital and recurrent) increased slightly, from 17.32 to 18.82. Table 15 below shows the federal recurrent grants to the universities between 1976 and 1987, together with NUC's recommendations (the procedures for deriving these are discussed below) and the requests made by the universities. In current prices, recurrent allocations in 1984, 1985 and 1986 were about one-third higher than in 1981. In view of the sub- stantial wage increases following the Cookey Report (1981) and an annual average increase in prices of 18%, the allocation in 1986 represented a - 28 - significant reduction in real terms over the earlier period. Considering that enrollments increased from 83,000 to 110,000 between 1981/82 and 1985/86, real recurrent resources per student have fallen by 382, from N4,038 in 1981/82 to 12,518 in 1985/86 (Annex Table A-14). About half of this reduction is due to the abolition of food subsidies for students and the introduction of fees for accommodations. However, for 1987 the allocation was actually below that for 1981, even in nominal terms. Table 15 Federal Recurrent Grants to Nigerian Universities 1976177-1986/87 Requested, Recommended and Received (Naira million) Requested Recommended Received by by by Year Universities NUC Universities 1976 187 165 137 1977 279 184 154 1978 394 232 140 1979 308 234 200 1980 - 290 261 1981 - 343 321 1982 - 580 335 1983 - 667 371 1984 821 669 428 1985 695 471 422 1986 691 466 415 1987 - 616 316 Sources: 1976 to 1979 Odaleye (1985), Table 1. 1980 Enaohwo (1985), Table III, and NUC Annual Reports 1978-1982. 1981 to 1985 NUC (1986), University Education in the 4th National Development Plan 1981-85. 1986 and 1987 NUC unpublished reports and Federal Government Estimates. 4.5 While the levels of federal recurrent grants remained constant in money terms until 1987, the capital budget has collapsed over recent years. Aggregate capital grants between 1980 and 1986 are documented in Table 16 below and in Annex Table A-15, broken down by university. This reduction in capital allocations does not reflect a reduced demand. As mentioned in Chapter 2 (para 2.36), it is estimated that N1.2 billion would be required to complete all the uncompleted projects in the university sector; however, NUC is working on simplifying and making more economical the physical planning norms developed in the late 1970s by NUCON. - 29 - Table 16 Federal Government Capital Grants to Universities, 1980-86, (N) 1980 1981 1982 1_9. 1984 a59 1 987 1/ Capital Grants 210.5 351.3 204.4 121.5 34.5 41.4 46.4 80 2/ 1/ Budget estimates. 2/ A N100 million allocation for rehabilitation was also budgeted for this year, divided equally among all universities. 4.6 The small capital allocations over the past three years were distributed on the basis of the age of each university rather than approved building programs. Among the consequences of the low capital budgets are serious dilapidation of existing physical facilities (especially infra. structural) at several of the older universities and the existence of two campuses at several of the younger universities (ostensibly a temporary and a permanent one), entailing additional operating costs. 4.7 The states spend a much smaller percentage of their education budgets on university education than does the Federal Government. In the southern states these higher education expenditures are devoted mainly to the state universities, whereas in the northern states they are devoted entirely to scholarships. Some data on this are presented in Table 17 below. Despite these relatively low percentages, given the competing demands for state resources there does not seem to be much potential for increasing state allocations for university education. - 30 - Table 17 State Government Recurrant Expenditure on Education, Selected States and Years (Naira million) Expenditure on Expenditure on (Q) State Year State University Education (3)x 100 (1) (2) (3) Bendel 1985 7.2 167.8 4.3 lso 1985 4.0 75.6 5.6 Anambra 1985 (1) 5.6 74.9 7.5 Source: State Government estimates. Notess (1) University expenditure is for 1987. (2) Northern states which do not have state universities spend 13-15Z of total recurrent education expenditure on post- secondary scholarships, as can be seen in Annex Table A-16. The Budzetinz Process 4.8 University budgeting centers on NUC, whose terms of reference include *advising the government on the financial needs, both recurrent and capital, of university education in Nigeria* and "receiving annually a block grant from the Federal Government and allocating it to universities with such conditions attacked as the Commission may think advisable.' The procedures for fulfilling these terms of reference are as follows: - In August or September a call-circular is issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance to all financial centers, including NUC. - NUC, in turn, invites each university to submit estimates of both recurrent and capital expenditures for the following year. - The universities submit their estimates together with data on their approved estimates for the previous year and actual expenditure for the two preceding years. Supporting information on enrollments, new entrants, accommodations, salaries, and library resources is also forwarded. - Between January and March, NUC holds budget hearings with individual universities in order to have first-hand knowledge of their present and proposed operations and to ensure that all these have NUC's approval. - On the basis of recommended student numbers and their distribution across faculties, NUC then prepares its own recommendations for *. 31 - each university's recurrent budget, based largely on its own set of detailed parameters. - These recommendations are then defended by NUC in hearings with the Federal Ministry of Finance and a subcommittee of the Federal Executive Council, and approved budgetary estimates are then prepared. - The resulting allocations are invariably below both those requested by the universities and those recommended by NUC. The level of grant to each university is then adjusted, usually on a pro-rata basis. - The universities then produce their own operating budgets based on the level of the overall block grant, and the grants are released to them quarterly. The claim to rational planning in the Nigerian university system rests largely on the design and application of the NUC parameters in setting recurrent budgets. University expenditures are divided into three types: direct teaching, non-teaching academic, and administrative support. Some of the parameters relevant to each type are described below. (a) Student/teacher ratios of 15:1 for arts, 10:1 for science, 7:1 for medicine, 10:1 for veterinary medicine, and 25:1 for education. These ratios have remained constant since 1977. Strong pressures to revise them come from education and veterinary medicine. A great deal of success has been achieved, at least across the universities as a whole, in limiting academic staff to the NUC parameters. However, there is major overstaffing in arts and veterinary medicine and understaffing in administration and law (Table 5 in Chapter 2). (b) An academic staff structure of 202 professors, 25Z senior lecturers, and 55? lecturers and assistant lecturers. (c) Senior technical staffs 1 to every 3 or 4 academic staff in science based disciplines. (d) Senior administrative staff: 1 to every 5 academic staff. Up until 1985, the ratio was 1:3 and even that ratio is currently exceeded. In 1986 there were 5,290 senior administrators for 9,316 academics and senior tehnical staff -- a ratio of 1:1.8. One of the universities' major criticisms of the NUC parameters centers on this one and its impracticability. (e) Junior staffs 302 of total student enrollment. This parameter was reduced from 50% in 1985. The 302 target has largely been achieved. (f) The value of goods and services for each faculty is equal to 20% of salaries for arts and social science faculties and 35% for science faculties. In addition, this item is inflated for postgraduate students by applying an extra weighting of 0.4. - 32 - 4.9 The following are the norms for non-teaching academic expenditures: (a) Teaching support, organized research, and public service activities are not designated a specific amount but must be within 5%, 20? and 10%, respectively, of direct teaching costs. However, in 1987 non- organized research became a line item in the budget. The library allocation should be 5Z of total university expenditure. (b) The staff development allocation is meant to be based on the number of graduate assistants, but in practice the purposes to which this allocation are put are wider than the training of that group. Finally, the following are the norms for administrative support expenditures: (c) General goods and services are funded at a rate of 15% of all administrative support salaries. At older and new universities health services are, respectively, 1100 and N50 per student; maintenance, N100,000 and N500,000; and student services, N100 and N200 per student. (d) General expenditures this is a major allocation covering housing allowances, passages, council expenses, vehicle loans, public utilities, etc., and is largely calculated on the basis of nation- ally approved levels of benefits. These parameters are for a fully developed university of 10,000 students. While new universities are still growing, some flexibility in the parameters is allowed. 4.10 NUC recently convened an ad-hoc group of academic staff and admin- istrators to advise on the need to revise some of these parameters and has also sought the views of the universities. Among the criticisms ares - The FUTs have a greater intensity of teaching than the conventional universities and therefore their academic staff/student ratios should be 1:7 or 1:8. - The distribution of faculty, particularly at the older univer- sities, among professors, senior lecturers and others should be changed to 352, 35% and 302, respectively. - The broad grouping of senior administrative staff is unmanageable and deceptive, as it includes, for instance, secretaries promoted from junior staff. One suggestion is to separate administrative from professional staff (e.g., nurses). - Subject groupings are too broad in scope. - Allocations for organized research should be based on the particular type of university. - Due to locational factors, costs of operating different universi- ties to the same level may vary. - 33 - * The practice of sharing out a NUC allocation which is below the recommended one, by applying a proportionate decrease over the previous year's grant, is at odds with the whole ethos of using parameters. - NUC has no specific policies on student/teacher ratios for sub- deoree, postgraduate, and part-time students. The implications of the existing parameters for the structure of university budgets are said to be as followss Activity % Salaries, goods and services of direct teaching units 44.0) Teaching suppcrt, library, public services, staff ) development, and general academic expenditure 15.2) 68.5% Organized research 9.3) Central administration 9.2) Service departments 3.5) ) 30.5% Student services 2.0) General expenditures 15.8) Retirement benefits 1.0 1.0% Total 100.0 Sources Kadiri (1986). With a student population of 10,000, a university funded along these lines would require an annual recurrent income of K49.5 million. But it should be noted that once the university receives its allocation, it can use it for whatever it wishes. 4.11 A similar degree of control over capital expenditure is also formally applied, although the very small allocations of recent years have somewhat reduced its relevance. NUC has a set of standards for all buildings, based on both space per student and cost per unit of space. These standards were revised in 1984 and are in the process of being revised again to make them more economical and simple. Priority is being given to academic buildings, followed by social and communal and, lastly, residential buildings. The supposed basis for capital allocations is the NUC approved Master Plan for each university. A general yardstick is that universities of a similar age group will be treated equally. Theoretically, since 1984 - 34 - capital grants have been tied to specific purposes, but in fact NUC's physical planning division in Kaduna has very little control over the use of capital allocations. Only in the most extreme cases can they withhold funds. 4.12 Thus far, this chapter has dealt with the budgets and expenditures of the universities as though all their income comes directly from the Federal Government in the form of a block grant. While this is largely the case, it is not entirely so. To cover all the different sources of univer- sity income, federal and state universities must be dealt with separately. Federal Universities 4.13 Besides the grant from NUC, federal universities receive small amounts of income from other sources. These include: fees for sub-degree and postgraduate courses and for examinations; income from rents paid by students and staff; bank interest payments; and gifts and endowments. In the past few years the universities have also been encouraged to develop their own income-generating activities. These take the form of commercializing the bookshop, the staff school, computer facilities, university press and guest houses, and also developing off-campus business activities such as farming, dry-cleaning, and consultancy services. Table 18 below shows the percentage breakdown of 1985/86 income for a sample of eight universities drawn from each of the three phases of university development. Table 18 Sources of Income for Nizerian Universities, 1985/86 (percent) FI ret-Phge Second-Phase ThI rd-Phase Overa I Sue Lei4 _M &e plaiduourt Kano Hercourt Ave Owerri Akure Ave Average NUC 92.8 96.5 90.8 91.1 86.2 91.0 89.8 69.9 72.9 66.2 69.1 64.9 Interest 4.4 0.1 0.4 2.4 8.9 8.9 9.8 2.1 21.8 24.0 22.9 7.9 Research Grant - 9.8 3.5 1.8 - - - - - - - 9.5 Fes .8 0.7 1.8 0.9 0.8 0.8 6.2 2.0 3.1 4.8 2.2 1.9 Rent 1.7 2.7 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.1 1.6 2.1 2.0 1.2 1.9 2.2 Buslness 0.8 5.6 0.2 2.1 9.9 2.5 9.1 1.2 1.1 4.8 2.7 1.9 Gifts 9.8 e.2 1.9 0.5 0.0 - 2.5 8.9 2.5 - 1.2 1.6 hest University budget submissions and eetimates. 4.14 A number of features stand out. Direct NUC funding dominates in all universities. The item *interest* largely represents payments on unspent earlier NUC capital allocations. If these two sources were combined, the average for each university grouping would be over 90? from NUC. "Rent' largely refers to payments by staff and students for accommodations. The share in total Income from all other activities -- fees, research grants, business activities, and gifts -- averages only 4.8% for the oldest - 35 - universities, 6.8% for the second-phase universities, and 6.12 for the FUTs. Each of these is discussed below. 4.15 Fees policy at Nigerian universities has undergone several changes over the past decade. Until 1977, all students were charged fees. Even though for most students their state governments paid these fees, for the universities they constituted a discrete source of income. Annual fees were about N140 for arts subjects and N160 for science subjects. In addition, fees for accommodations and meals averaged N200-N230 a year. In 1977 the Federal Government, having taken over total responsibility for the univer- sities, abolished tuition fees. An argument heard in the universities is that no compensation was allowed for this reduction in income. Major changes in the funding and provision of student accommodations and meals occurred in 1984/85 when the Federal Government abolished all sabsidized meals, which at that time involved a subsidy of 14.5 per student per day, or N820-950 per student per year. This led to an overall savings of 16% in a university's budget. Also, students were asked to pay an annual accommodations charge of N90. In 1982 the universities were asked to devise a new structure of tuition fees. This was done, but the Government finally felt unable to impose it for undergraduates. At the postgraduate level, fees are charged; for example, at Ahmadu Bello University, fees are 1500 a year for arts and social science courses, 1600 for law, 1700 for engineering and science, and N1,000 for the MBA. Fees at other universities are similar. While there are both state and federal scholarships for this postgraduate programs, the majority of students pay their own fees. Non-Nigerians pay between 1750 and 11,200 a year for first-degree tuition and between 11,500 and 13,000 for postgraduate tuition. 4.16 As Table 18 above indicates, the extent to which universities receive research grants is small and this is concentrated at the first-phase universities with organized research units. In many cases, these research grants cover only additional non-salary payments. 4.17 In the past few years, the Federal Government has encouraged the universities to generate income directly through commercial activities. The response has been, first, to comercialize existing activities such as bookshops, guest houses and printing presses to ensure that they are at least self-financing and, hopefully, eventually profit-making; and second, to undertake additional activities such as developing commercial farming on university land, or starting other enterprises. Difficulty in finding start- up capital is the main concern voiced by the universities, but it is obvious that Government pressure, plus the universities' own desire to generate income, will result in further developments in this area, whether or not this is an appropriate activity of the universities. 4.18 Finally, some university income has come from gifts and endowments. Interestingly, the second-phase universities seem to benefit the most from this source, but it appears that most items are one-off and cannot be considered as continuous sources of income. State Universities 4.19 The eight state universities receive no federal funding and are therefore financially dependent on their state governments. Most of these - 36 * universities have grown out of institutions previously offering sub-degree programs, but by 1984 about 80% of entrants were enrolled in degree programs. Early indications are that completion rates are rather low (similar to the FUTs), but the reasons for this cannot be determined because of a lack of data. 4.20 Employment conditions at the state universities are generally similar to those at the federal universities and many senior staff members are on secondment from the latter. Funding is, perhaps, less secure. State governments receive their statutory grants via the Federal Government on a monthly basis and necessarily treat the universities similarly. At Rivers State University, the grants have consistently been 8%-10Z below the approved budget, and the capital budget allocation for 1985/86 had not been received by February 1987. At Bendel State University, 92% of recurrent income is derived from the state government. A potentially significant difference between state and federal universities is that the former are less con- strained in charging fees or development levies. Table 19 below shows the fee structure for five of the state universities. Table 19 Annual Fees and Other Charges in State Universities (Naira) Rivers Anambra Imo Bendel Cross Rivers Tuition fee - * 250 - 400 Development levy 100 170 100 300 150 1/ Lodging 90 (unknown) 150 100 150 Examination fee 20 50 25 45 - Library - 100 - - - Other charges 20 175 160 120 135 Total 230 495 685 565 835 Source: State university records. I/ Payable only by non-indigenes of the state. 4.21 State universities rely on state government funding, most of which comes from the states' share of the Federation Account. Hence, when federal revenues rise, so do state revenues and income. However, as discussed in para 4.7 above, the federal and state levels of government give different priorities to university development. Scholarships for University Education 4.22 The situation with regard to scholarships for undergraduate and postgraduate students is not precisely known. Neither the Federal Ministry of Education nor NUC collects this data, and since the universities receive payments for fees, accommodations, etc., directly from the students, they * 37 - have no way of knowing the initial source of these payments. In general terms, the situation as it has evolved over the past few years with respect to both the federal and state governments is described below. 4.23 Federal scholarships to cover maintenance were made available for both undergraduate and postgraduate students until 1983-84 when they tempo- rarily ceased, only to be reactivated in 1987/88. Annex Table A-17 shows the distribution of Federal Government postgraduate scholarships by subject and country of study for 1981/82 to 1983/84; it also shows the subjects in which the 800 or so scholarships made available for 1987/88 may be held. Reacti- vation of the scholarship scheme incorporated several changes to that in effect earliers there are now far fewer scholarships (and this low level is expected to remain constant), none are tenable for study abroad and none are tenable for the social sciences, humanities, most education and business studies, or for undergraduate courses. The value of a scholarship is N3,000 and covers both fees and maintenance. Given the fact that fees never exceed 11,000 p.a. and food costs about 14 per day in the university cafeterias, these scholarships have been set at a relatively high level and in particular much higher than the scholarships given by state governments. 4.24 Until the early 1980s, all students from all states received some level of public support, although in the southez- states this did not cover all costs. In the past five years, support has gradually eroded, beginning in the eastern states of Imo and Anambra where scholarships were discontinued in 1983. Until 1984, all students in Ogun, Oyo, Bendel and Lagos States received around 1300 a year, but these grants have now all but disappeared. In Rivers and the middle belt states, scholarships are still allocated but in much smaller numbers and are directed toward specific subject groups, espe- cially science based ones. Only in the northern states of Sokoto, Kano, Borno and perhaps Gongola do all students receive scholarships for mainten- ance. Some data in Annex Table A-16 give an indication of the importance of scholarships in the education budgets of five states. 4.25 To make a rough calculation of the overall number of university students who receive scholarships, it is assumed that all students from the most northerly states, half of the students from Rivers and the middle belt states, and no students from the eastern and southwestern states receive scholarships. Applying these percentages to the overall student enrollment by state for 1985/86 gives a total of 31,000 scholarship holders out of a federal university enrollment of 110,000 (28k). This is, of course, only a rough calculation, and does not take into account the widely varying levels of scholarships given by the different states. In any decision to introduce tuition fees, the burden on state government budgets of a higher level of scholarships would have to be taken into consideration. - 38 - CHAPTER 5 THE COST STRUCTURE OF UNIVERSITIES Comparative Unit Costs 5.1 The foregoing discussion on university development and financing has demonstrated the strong emphasis given to higher education in Nigeria. It has also shown that over the past four or five years the levels of financing have been falling, especially in terms of expenditures per student. This has brought about a deterioration in not only the physical environment, but also in the more direct aspects of teaching such as procurement of library books and laboratory materials. The residence halls are often extremely overcrowded, with utilities in a state of dilapidation. The case studies on nine universities in Annex B show conclusively that many aspects of the universities' operations are underfunded, given the objectives and standards set for and expected of them. 5.2 A different perspective, however, emerges through a comparison of university unit costs with those of other levels of education. Table 20 below presents a rough set of unit costs for each educational level of 1985 (more detailed costings for the universities are made later in this chapter). One year at a federal university costs 18 times as much as one year in most secondary schools and 60 times as much as one year in a primary school. In light of these figures, plus the fact that primary and secondary schools in some areas are so starved for public funds that they can do little more than pay teachers' salaries, the universities seem relatively well off. The ambiguity of this situation, with the universities appearing to be both under- and over-financed, makes it important to analyse the universities' unit costs. This is essential if any attempt is to be made to sustain and perhaps improve the quality of education at a time when federal grants are being reduced in value at an ever increasing rate. - 39 - Table 20 Annual Cost per Student by Educational Level, 1985 (Naira) Educational Level Unit Cost Primary 65 State Secondary 219 Federal Secondary 1,187 State Teachers College 730 Federal Teachers College 2,890 Polytechnic 1,460 Federal University 3,911 Sources Benson (1985). Total Unit Costs 5.3 In 1981, the Federal Government grant for university recurrent expenditures was N321 million for 82,952 students, implying a unit cost of N3,882 (at the prevailing exchange rate equivalent to US$6,162). Similar glottal figures for 1985 suggest a unit cost of N3,911. The 1985 unit cost at the prevailing exchange rate was US$4,394, but today it would convert to US$978; hence, conversions and comparisons based on the US dollar need to be treated very carefully. Moreover, 1981 and 1985 unit costs cannot be easily compared, as in 1981 student food subsidies were provided and by 1985/86 they were no longer given. Breakdown of Unit Costs by Component and University 5.4 Analysis of the cost of Nigerian universities needs to go beyond the overall unit cost and focus on its major components. This is done in Tables 21, 22 and 23 for 14 of the federal universities. Initially it was expected that the breakdown would show a similar pattern to that deduced from an application of the NUC norms as discussed in Chapter 4 (para 4.10). There it was shown that if the NUC norms were applied 68.5Z of allocations would go to academic activities (of which 44% would be for direct teaching) and 30.5% to administrative activities. Once the grants are distributed to the univer- sities, however, NUC has no control over their use, and the actual breakdown is very different from what would be expected using the norms. Since it may be expected that both the unit costs and their composition will vary according to the age and size of the university, examples from each phase of university development are presented, along with unit cost and enrollment figures for two state universities. Table 24 and Graph 1 then sumarize some of the main features. Among those to be noted ares - While the overall unit costs of the first- and second-phase uiver- sities are remarkably similar (measured by either the weighted mean or the median), the distribution of these costs varies signifi- cantly, with direct teaching costs taking a higher share at the - 40 - older, larger universities. Adding to this the slightly greater share for other academic activities, the total academic share is 52 higher and the corresponding share for administration, 5% lower. - The overall unit costs are similar not only for universities of a dissimilar age but also those with very dissimilar onrollments (averages for the first- and second-phase universities are 12,015 and 4,137, respectively). This implies that after a relatively low enrollment threshold, neither economies nor diseconomies of scale are operative. - Differences in unit costs and the composition of costs are greater between the second- and third-phase universities. In the latter, unit costs are more than double those in the older institutions, and the proportion of this larger amount spent on teaching and other academic activities is significantly lower than in the second-phase and much lower than in the first-phase universities. Enrollments avesage below 1,000 and at this level there are obvious economies of scale to be gained through expansion. - Unit costs of the state universities (two in our sample) appear to be in line with those of the federal universities, given their enrollment levels. - From a study of all available data, it seems that economies of scale stop operating when enrollments are around 3,500. This can be seen 1'. Graph 1. Graph 1 plots unit cost by enrollment for the 16 universities, demonstrating decreasing unit costs up to about 4,000 students and constant unit costs thereafter. - 41 - Table 21 DIsaagregation of Unit Costs. First-Phase Nigerian Universities (percent) Neukka Ibadan Bni I* Lagos Average 1904108 101 10el. %’§s.ee 198ee Direct teachtng unit* 86.1 49.8 82.9 88.1 88.8 87.8 ToachIng support 0.7 8.0 8.6 4.8 1.2 Organized research 2.0 1.8 2.0 1.6 2.0 Pu!lil service units 2.0 2.4 8.7 1.6 6.2 06her academie 12.1 4.7 16.1 .7 Total academle 62.6 61.2 62.2 52.8 62.0 84.6 AdminIstratlve support central 10.8 7.4 18.1 - 18.4 vork* 11.0 11.8 4.4 - 14.8 health 8.0 1.7 2.8 47.7 2.9 studente 0.0 2.8 4.4 - 2.2 general expenditure 20.8 15.6 28.0 - 15.2 Totel adinistration 47.6 28.8 47.0 47.7 48.0 4.0 Grand Total (N *000) 48,848 42,446 29,464 40,~00 49,062 $tudents 12,417 18,062 9,688 12.128 10,68 Un1t Cost (M) 8,682 8,062 8,641 8,872 4,61 8,666 WeIghted Unit Cost 8,886 Soure: Individual univers1ty data sheets. - 42 - Table 22 Dlsaaagregation of Unit Costs. Second-Phase Nigerian Universities (percent) Port Joe Sokoto Maidugurl Harcourt Kano Average 11880 124100 1904106 19m5ee 12w~3 Direct teaching unite 86.8 29.6 87.2 86.0 8.« 88.9 Teaching support 1.2 1.3 - 1.1 1.1 Organized research 1.2 1.8 0.1 1.2 8.8 PublIc service unite 2.4 2.2 8.2 6.7 1.7 Other academic ,.0 10.0 18. 9.9 _7.9 Total acadele 46.7 44.8 58.8 64.7 46.0 48.7 AdministratIve support central 17.2 11.7 16.8 19.4 9.9 werkt 10.2 - 0.5 6.0 8.7 hoalth 8.8 6.1 2.4 8.9 5.8 studente 7.9 4.2 2.5 4.4 2.0 general expenditure 15.9 84.7 16O .9.j 29.0 Total administratlen 64.8 56.7 46.2 46.8 6.0 51.8 Grand Total (N *0O) 1,40 11,542 19,876 17,278 14,86 Studente 5,172 8,299 0,016 4,519 4,287 Unit Cost (N) 8,604 8,499 8,808 $,28 8,464 8,587 Wighted Unit Cost 8,526 Soures: Individual univerlty data sheet. - 43 - Table 23 Disaggregation of Unit Costa, Third-Phase and State Universities (pørcent) Federal Stato Makurdl Akure OwerrI Yola Ave Rivers Bendel Average 1N4i86 X9i4/U ItI/" 19§ ., .. - - - , Direct teaching unit. 26.6 29.8 82.2 28.6 29.2 Teaching support - 6.6 2.8 - Organlzed research 1.7 6.7 0.9 - Pubile servlce unIts 1.4 6.4 - 1.2 Other acadeMie 10. .8 § - Total academil 89.7 U.7 48.9 41.2 48.1 Administrative support central 17.4 16.8 19.1 24.2 works 18.6 8.8 6.9 9.8 health 4.2 4.2 4.4 4.4 studenta 2.1 8.7 8.6 - general expendIture IL. 1,.8 gs, 212. Total adminIstration 60.8 49.8 69.2 88.8 68.9 Grand Total (N *08) 6,8 6 4,184 7,764 2,48 18,6g 7,480 Student. 597 419 1,226 26 2,90 1,87 Unit Cost (M) 8,9 9,986 6,289 10,818 8,888 5,674 4,642 5,108 Weighted UnIt Coat 7,987 6,286 eSogoe Individuel universty data shees. - 44 - Table 24 Sumary Table of Ependiture Distribution by Function and University Type.Unit Costs and Enrollment University Type First Second Third NUC Exnnditure Function Phase Phase Phase State Norm Direct teaching costs (2) 38 34 29 - 44 Total academic cost (2) 54 49 43 - 68.5 Total administrative cost (Z) 46 51 57 - 31.5 Unit cost (N) 3,536 3,526 7,937 5,266 4,950 Average enrollment 11,752 4,649 619 2,272 10,000 Source: See Tables 21, 22 and 23. Graph 1 Unit Cost by Level Enrollments, Nigerian Universities 10 Unit Cost (NIO00) 9 8- 7 6 5 4 x 3x x 2 ' I I I I I I I I I I I I 0 ! 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Enrollments ('000) - 45 - Turning to the set of more detailed tabless - Table 21 depicts the first-phase federal universities. A notable feature is the high shares of direct teaching and total academic costs at Ibadan, reflecting in part the high proportion of senior faculty at that university. Since the overall mean expenditure at Ibadan appears to be below average, the implication is that there are significantly fewer resources for all the university's administrative services. Among the other first-phase universities, direct teaching costs average around one-third of total costs and one-half of all academic expenditures. A major change that has occurred in the structure of university budgets since 1984185 is that the student food subsidy was discontinued beginning with the 1985/86 academic year; previously this subsidy had used up at least N820 per student per year, or about 16% of university recurrent allocations. In terms of specific universities, at Nsukka the effect has been to change the share of the total budget devoted to student services from 19.3? to 1.5%, while at Benin the share has changed from 19.4? to 4.4?. - Among the second-phase universities shown in Table 22, unit costs are very similar, though again there are significant differences in the expenditure shares. Direct teaching cost shares are closely correlated to enrollments. Major differences occur in the shares for the catch-all "administrative general expenditure.* - For the third-phase universities, there is a strong negative relationship between unit cost and enrollment and, apart from Akure, expenditure shares are very similar -- around 30? for direct teaching, 40% for all academic expenditures, and 60? for administrative expenditure. 5.5 For the universities as a whole, apart from the category of direct teaching cost, the largest item in the budget is general administrative expenditure, which averages 20.1% even with no salary component. 5.6 It is interesting to note that all universities at all levels of development and enrollment spend much more on administration than would be the case if the NUC norms were applied. Hence, an integral part of any attempt to make the universities more cost effective must be greater central control over the use of funds once they have been allocated to ensure that at least the overall allocations for teaching and research are adhered to. 5.7 Finally, with regard to the distribution of expenditures, In Table 25 below a comparison is made between 10 Nigerian universities (first- and second-phase), three Ghanaian and two British universities. Between countries there are major differences in expenditure distribution. In parti- cular, the share spent on direct academic activities (items 1 and 2) averages 54.0?, 48.7?, 25.4? and 70.1? for Nigerian first-phase, second-phase, Ghanaian and British universities, respectively. Just keeping the facilities open takes almost half the finances in Ghana, a third in Nigeria, and a quarter in Britain. Universities in Ghana are in a worse financial plight than those in Nigeria, while the British universities are in a healthier - 46 - position and do not have the same level of welfare responsibilities as the others. Finally, the large effect on the budget of subsidized student meals in Ghana, compared with the situation in Nigeria, is worth noting. Table 25 Percentage Distribution of Expenditure by Functions Niaerian, Ghanaian and British Universities Function Nixeria Ghana Britain Phase 1 Phase 2 Academic departments and research 39.7 35.4 23.5 62.2 Academic support 14.3 13.3 1.9 7.9 Staff and student facilities 2.5 4.2 11.7 3.0 Health 2.7 4.1 13.0 0.7 Minor works 10.1 8.5 2.7 2.3 Premises and administration 30.7 34.5 47.2 23.9 Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Sources: Ghanaian and British universities, Hinchliffe (1987) pp. 128, 149. Nigerian universities, tables 22, 23, 24. 5.8 A main feature to be noted in Table 25 is that in Nigeria academic activities consume about 512 of the budget, whereas in Britain the share is 70%. Furthermore, at the University of 11orin, for example, between 1979 and 1982 this share consistently declined. The relatively low share of expendi ture going directly to academic activities is an important area to investi- gate further. To some extent the figures are misleading in that housing, vehicles and leave allowances, for example, are generally included under the administration categories even though they are essential expenditures related to teaching (as well as non-teaching) personnel. Not all the discrepancy is likely to come from that source, however. 5.9 In the final part of this chapter, two issues which influence the level and composition of unit costs will be discussed. These are differ- ential teaching costs by subject and staffing levels and costs. Teaching Costs by Faculty 5.10 The Federal Government has set a goal that 60? of university enrollments should be in science and science-related subjects (para 1.10). The justification for increasing the proportion of students in these subjects is that graduates find more appropriate employment and find it more quickly - 47 - than other graduates. These subjects are, however, generally much more expensive to teach than arts-based subjects. NUC issues recommended recur- rent expenditure figures for each subject for each university. The recom- mendations for Ahmadu Bello University for 1986/87 are shown in Table 26 below. The differentials are substantial. The proliferation of medical and agricultural faculties (paras 2.19-2.21) on basically geopolitical grounds can now be seen to have had substantial financial implications. Another geopolitical factor that tends to inflate unit costs is the decision to allow all faculties and departments to offer postgraduate programs, with no attempt to develop centers of excellence at selected universities. The rough calcu- lations in para 5.14 below show that the unit recurrent cost of postgraduate studies may now be up to 75Z higher than that at the undergraduate level. The unit teaching costs, however, should be viewed in the context of their share in total unit costs. TaJle 26 University Teachins Costs Recommended by NUC on Basis of Norms, by Faculty Ahmadu Bello University, 1986187 (Naira) Subject Unit Cost Subiect Unit Cost Human Medicine 5,852 Arts & Social Sciences 1,652 Veterinary Medicine 4,174 Law 1,116 Agriculture 3,513 Administration 1,071 Natural Sciences 3,206 Education 879 Pharmacy 3,138 Engineering 3,129 Sources NUC records. Notes Not including overall university academic costs. Unit Costs by Faculty and University 5.11 The preceding discussion covers overall unit costs across univer- sities. Another form of analysis is to compare the unit costs of a particular faculty across universities. An attempt to do this is made below, but it is very tentative as the many variables involved cannot be fully taken into account here, which would be necessary if any in-depth study aimed at academic rationalization is to be undertaken in the future. 5.12 Calculations of the unit costs (see Tables 27 and 28 below) of five faculties for a number of universities in 1984/85 and 1986/87 clearly indi- cate that actual expenditures differ considerably within faculties across universities. If these rough estimates are corroborated, there is a clear case for subject rationalization and concentration among universities. * 48 - Table 27 Actual Unit Teaching and Related Academic Costs by Faculty, Selected Universities, 1984185 (Naira) Subiect Jos Ibadan Benin Social Science 782 703 567 Arts 1,137 952 634 Science 1,918 1,665 1,564 Engineering - 1,935 1,111 Medicine 3,082 2,932 2,108 Sources Individual university data sheets and NUC enrollment records. Table 28 Budgeted Unit Teaching and Related Academic Costs by Faculty. Selected Universities, 1986187 (Naira) Subject Ife Kano Port Harcourt Maiduguri Social Science 1,322 1,231 875 1,504 Arts 1,852 1,170 1,428 1,454 Science 2,255 3,045 1,906 2,237 Engineering 1,527 4,531 2,030 22,162 Medicine 3,382 6.217 4,612 15,155 Unit Costs of Postaraduate Studies 5.13 In the NUC norms for calculating university budgets there is no overall additional weighting attached to postgraduate students for use, say, in determining the required number of faculty. Rather, in this respect the demand for contact for postgraduates is treated the same as for under- graduates. However, the norms for goods and services within teaching units include a 40Z mark-up for postgraduates. 5.14 These practices do not reflect the actual cost differences between undergraduate and postgraduate studies. Besides the extra use of materials, a postgraduate student's demand for teaching is likely to be greater in two respects. First, it is common for faculty teaching postgraduate students to do less teaching on the argument that more preparation is necessary -- i.e., postgraduate teaching commands a higher weighting in the teaching allocation process. Second, most postgraduate programs in Nigeria appear to be offered for few students, which again increases the amount of teaching input per student. The overall effect of these factors is significant, as the following rough calculations shows - 49 - N Per Student N Per Student Undergraduate Postgraduate Fixed Cost 1,200 1,200 Goods and Services 600 840 Faculty Salaries 1,200 3,200 Total 3,000 5,240 These rough calculations imply that unit costs of postgraduate studies are 75% higher than those of undergraduate studies, and that the current post- graduate tuition fee does not even cover these extra costs. Staffina Levels 5.15 Thus far, expenditures have been disaggregated by function and activity. Another way is by item -- in particular, personal emoluments and goods and services. In British universities, personal emoluments account for about 75% of total expenditures. Corresponding figures for some of the Nigerian universities,in 1984/85 or 1985186 ares z % Ibadan 83 Kano 58 Ahmadu Bello 64 Jos 57 Lagos 63 Maiduguri 46 Nsukka 62 Ife 57 Owerri 45 Benin 55 These are substantial variations. The high figure for Ibadan demonstrates again the seniority of its staff and, in turn, the small amount of resources available for goods and services. For the other phase-one universities the average share for personal emoluments is 60%, slightly higher than for the second-phase universities. The relatively new universities such as Owerri are obviously able to devote large amounts to goods and services. The generally greater proportion of wage costs in British universities reflects a higher ratio of wage levels to other costs than is the case in Nigeria. It does not reflect higher staffing levels. These are presented in Table 29 below for a number of Nigerian universities. - 50 - Table 29 Staffina Ratios at Nigerian Universities, 1985186 Port Lagos Ife Kano Maidupuri Harcourt Owerri Teachers 976 977 331 512 382 137 Senior technical 495 278 80 30 93 41 Senior administrative 733 635 203 173 318 132 Junior staff 2,983 2,783 1,039 1,777 1,378 471 Enrollments 10.665 12,128 4,237 5,542 4,519 1,010 'When these figures are compared with the NUC parameters outlined in Chapter 4 (paras 4.8-4.10) with approximately 50:50 arts/science enrollments, an overall student/teaching staff ratio of 12.5:1 could be expected. For the six institutions in Table 29, there are the following number of students for each member of the teaching staff: Port Lagoe Ife Kano Maidusuri Harcourt Owerri 10.9 12.4 12.8 10.8 11.8 7.4 Apart from the relatively new university at Owerri, the parameters are broadly being met. The same is the case for junior staff, where the actual relationship of these staff to total student enrollment is: Port Lagos Ife Kano Maidusuri Harcourt Overri 281 23% 25% 32% 30% 472 The achievement of this parameter has meant substantial staff reductions over the past few years following its revision from 50% to 30%. Far less success has been achieved in attaining the parameters for senior support staff, particularly for administrative workers and their ratio to teaching staff is far from the prescribed 1:5. At the six universities in Table 29 there are the following number of teaching staff for each administrative workers Port Laaos Ife Kano Maiduiuri Harcourt Overri 1.3 1.5 1.6 3.0 1.2 1.0 The universities argue that the 1:5 parameter is unrealistic and confusing. Some form of reconsideration is required and the findings enforced if NUC is not to lose credibility in this area. - 51 - 5.16 Aggregating all staff and comparing them to total student enroll- ment in each of the six universities, there is one staff member for the following number of students: Port Lte Ife Kan Maidupuri Harcourt overri 2.1 2.6 3.4 2.2 2.1 1.3 These figures compare with 0.9 in Ghana and 6.3 in a British university, implying that while staffing is nowhere near as inflated as in Ghana there are still almost three times as many staff per student in Nigerian univer- sities as in British universities. 5.17 From the analyses in this chapter, we can conclude that (a) there is little point in NUC developing an elaborate set of norms for the purpose of checking the funding levels of the different universities if the norms are not then applied; (b) the pattern of university development pursued in Nigeria, with self-contained university communities, involves heavy adminis- trative expenditures; and (c) geopolitical considerations have so far hindered the development of centers of excellence, which is essential in achieving cost effectiveness in higher education. CHAPTER 6 ISSUES OF UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT AND FINANCE 6.1 Although at times the study team may have been critical of a lack of effective implementation of plans for the Nigerian higher education system and of some of the extravagances and wastage of resources that have become apparent, it should also be pointed out that the team was impressed with the many important innovations introduced into the system. Where else in sub- Saharan Africa has such a detailed set of costing norms been developed? Where else is there an organization such as NUC acting as a buffer between the Government and the universities? Where else has the Government succeeded in discontinuing all student food subsidies and part of the boarding sub- sidies at universities? And where else have significant fees begun to be charged at the postgraduate level? Nigeria has already experimented with many of the policy changes that the Bank is now encouraging other African countries to consider in their educational development planning. 6.2 In this final chapter, we shall not further discuss Nigeria's achievements in higher education over the past few years nor those on which action is now being taken. Rather, we wish to draw attention to existing problems and actions that might be taken to solve them. Enrollment Growth 6.3 Current total enrollments are about 112,000 at federal universities and 14,000 at state universities. The medium-tem objectives are expansion of 2.5, 10 and 15% a year for the first, second and third generation federal universities, respectively. This expansion path would result in a - 52 - total enrollment by 1993 of 175,000 in the federal system. To increase the feasibility of increasing the number of degree graduates to the level regarded as necessary within budgetary constraints, three steps need to be taken. First, it is recommended that all sub-university, basic, and pre- paratory courses be moved out of the universities to second-cycle institu- tions where they rightly belong. Second, for postgraduate training it is recommended that centers of excellence in certain fields be established at selected universities, so that reasonable numbers of students may be enrolled in each program. Third, there should be a complete freeze on opening any new departments or faculties at the second and third generation universities, with economies of scale to be achieved by expanding enrollments in existing departments. 6.4 The present policy that benignly encourages state universities to absorb excess demand merits some careful consideration. These universities are attempting to emulate the structure and organization of federal univer- sities, and they do not appear to have lower unit costs. Within some states there will be strong political pressure for expansion. One should be aware that state government revenues come largely from the same sources as federal revenues, and also that their resources are fungible and can be used as much for primary education as for higher education. The danger of the state universities being used as safety valves, coming up against financial con- straints and then turning to the Federal Government, is a very real one in the Nigerian context. A further problem of the state universities is that all eight are in the southern half of the country and this tends to exacer- bate regional differences. They also tend to add to the growing unemployment of graduates, especially in the fields of arts and social science. Finally, the majority of their funding still comes directly or indirectly from the Federal Government. Postgraduates 6.5 Postgraduate enrollments during the 1980s have been growing four times as fast as enrollments as a whole, and in 1985 one in 12 students was in a postgraduate program. This varies from one in four at Ibadan to one in 33 at Sokoto. Of all postgraduate students in 1984/85, 18% were in educa- tion, 18% in social science, 14% in humanities, 13% in pure science, and the remaining 37% spread across other subject groups. Growth is by far the fastest in the humanities and social science, where manpower demand is the lowest. Government policy is to encourage the first-phase universities to move toward a 252 postgraduate enrollment while at the same time allowing all other universities to develop programs at that level. The argument for this laissez-faire policy seems to be that only through time will centers of excellence develop and it is unknown at which university specific subject areas might become strong. Another argument, voiced within the universities, is that postgraduate teaching is the most interesting for academic staff and thus encourages them to remain in the universities. There are a number of concerns regarding this policy. First, there may be only a few enrollments in individual courses, resulting in high unit costs many times higher than the fees charged; for example, one second-phase university had the following number of MA/MSC students in 1985: * 53 - Arabic 5 Political science 3 Biology 2 Physics 2 and a first-phase university in 1984/85 hads Accountancy 7 Animal science .4 Soil science 3 French 3 English 6 Vocational and technical education 2 Chemical engineering 3 Agricultural angineering 3 Mechan.cal engineering 4 Microbiology 2 Pharmacology 3 Geography 3 Geology 3 Preventive medicine 1 Parasitology 1 A second concern with regard to this policy is that it increases the demand for highly specialized journals and equipment, again adding significantly to costs. Third, the actual distribution of postgraduate students across subjects indicates that postgraduate studies are being used as an alternative to unemployment and that yet another escalation of entry qualifications is underway. It is not common in even the well-developed university systems in industrialized countries for each faculty in each university to offer post- graduate programs, and there is no valid reason why a pattern of prolife- ration should be followed in Nigeria. It is therefore recommended that no postgraduate program be allowed unless it has the minimum enrollment neces- sary for cost-effective operation. Obviously, the current situation where many postgraduate programs have only one to three students represents far from an efficient use of resources. Research 6.6 Teaching hours for academic staff in the universities generally average 8-12 hours a week. The presumption is that the rest of the time, apart from class preparation and administration, is devoted to research. Without evidence of substantial research, these teaching hours are far too few to be justified. While it has not been possible for the study team to quantify research output in Nigeria, in light of the very small financial allocations to support research (see the case study on Ibadan in Annex B, par& 5) and the large number of university teaching staff, the average amount of research done per teacher is minimal. Until ways can be found to sub- stantially increase research output, teaching loads and teacher/pupil ratios could be substantially increased. However, the university system in Nigeria is now so large that research work, such as that done at the Universities of Ife, Lagos and Ilorin in past years (para 2.33), could make a substantial contribution to the country's economic and social development. Questions of - 54 - research funding, dissemination, organization and sponsorship/direction need to be seriously approached and answers sought outside the traditional European/North American mode. The question of what is the return on the one- third of a university's teacher salary budget theoretically directed to research is one that merits particular attention. Also, some research grants should be made available to support research organizations and activities that could be significant for national development (para 2.35). University Teaching Service 6.7 One of the most urgent problems faced by the newer universities is their dependence on expatriate teachers (para 1.16). This dependence becomes a very serious problem at times like the present when large numbers are resigning following the Naira depreciation, which has reduced by more than two-thirds the foreign currency value of their remittances. Unless some way can be found to transfer teachers from the older universities, this departure of expatriate staff could cause many faculties to close, especially in the north. One possibility would be to establish a national university teaching service. This would allow staff to move from university to university, maintaining seniority and pension rights; it would also enable those whose promotions are slowed or blocked in a more established university -- because its higher-grade posts allowed according to the norms have been filled -- to move up to a higher position in a never university. Another possibility would be to allow differential salary scales or other sets of incentives for different universities, combined with transferable life and health insurance and pension schemes. These proposals could increase staff mobility, and only if there is such mobility can the problems caused by the departure of expa- triate staff be solved. Use of Existing Physical Facilities and Staff 6.8 The overcrowding of student hostel facilities, as well as science laboratories, engineering workshops and libraries, has been mentioned already, as has the strain on infrastructure due to the large number of students, far more than originally planned, that many campuses have to cope with (paras 2.39 and 5.1). There is also a shortage of academic staff in scientific disciplines, particularly in the north of the country. 6.9 Currently, the universities are in session for 26-31 weeks a year, over two semesters. During the period July to mid or end of October there are virtually no students on campus. If a three-semester system could be introduced, with each student attending only two semesters (or graduating sooner), student enrollments in any one semester could be reduced to two- thirds of their current level. This spreading out of student enrollments throughout the year would enable savings in non-teaching staff and also some savings in teaching staff. However, teachers accruing more than an agreed number of student contact hours per year may have to be paid some overtime or supplemental allowances in order to teach a third semester. 6.10 Obviously, a simple system of student rotation would have to be developed if economies of scale are to be realized. For example, first-year students might attend semesters two and three, second-yeur students semesters one and three, and so on. - 55 - Part-Time Courses, Especially at the Postgraduate Level 6.11 We have mentioned that many young Nigerians are studying at the postgraduate level as an alternative to unemployment (para 6.5). On the other hand, many of those in employment would like to have an opportunity to upgrade their qualifications while holding onto their jobs. Hence there is a strong argument for significantly reducing in postgraduate courses the enrollment of students who have had no work experience, reducing the emphasis on full-time postgraduate training, and increasing the emphasis on part-time postgraduate studies. The possibility of raising fees at the postgraduate level so that they cover at least all of the direct teaching costs at that level should also be considered. Freeze on Administrative Posts and Expenditures 6.12 Throughout this study, attention has been drawn to the high levels of administrative costs at Nigerian universities. The only NUC parameter universally exceeded is that for senior administrative staff, as mentioned in para 4.8(d). Priority often seems to be given to the rehabilitation or construction of administrative buildings. Moreover, when overall budgets are cut the share of administrative expenditures tends to rise. For all these reasons, it is suggested that there be a complete freeze on the recruitment of both senior and junior administrative staff, along with planned phased reductions, until the proportion of total budgets allocated to administration falls from its current level of above 45% to around 40?, as recommended by NUC. Some method for ensuring that budgets allocated for other purposes are not used for administration also needs to be found. NUC and the Allocation of Funds to Universities 6.13 As discussed in Chapter 4 (paras 4.4-4.6), actual budgetary allo- cations to universities through NUC are much lower than they would be if the norms and parameters were scrupulously applied. In 1987, for example, NUC received only 51% of its recommended federal recurrent grant and in no year has more than 93? of its recommendations been accepted by the Federal Ministry of Finance. The Ministry allocates the funds to NUC as a block grant and they are not earmarked for any specific purpose; NUC in turn sends the funds to the universities as block grants, with few restrictions on what they may do with the allocated funds. Thus, once the universities receive their grant, they are virtually free to decide what to do with them. This lack of control over expenditures has a number of consequences. For example, as mentioned in para 6.12, administrative expenditures are much higher than they should be according to the norms while expenditures on teaching, learning materials and research are much lower; even faculties never approved by NUC can be set up and financed with NUC grants for many years. 6.14 As a first step in strengthening NUC and improving its credibility, the NUC parameters should be more realistic in terms of the available resources, and also more strictly enforced so that the universities have less freedom to exceed the norms (e.g., through savings relative to the parameters in other areas). A further step to be taken is to ensure that, whatever parameters and norms are used in setting up the recurrent budget, the neces- sary allocations are in fact made. During periods of severe financial constraints, more restrictive norms might be used for some expenditure - 56 - categories than would be the case in more normal years. The universities should also be given incentives to encourage them to reduce expenditures in areas not directly related to teaching and research. 6.15 Currently, NUC is re-examining its parameters and norms, partly because of pressures to revise them in some subjects -- for example, to reduce student/teacher ratios in veterinary medicine (now 10:1) and education (now 25:1). With approved budget estimates now averaging well below NUC's recommendations, any changes in the norms that reduce student/teacher ratios do not seem appropriate at this time. Capital Development Programs 6.16 NUC's physical planning unit needs to exercise much greater control over capital development on university campuses. Up to now even the rela- tively luxurious NUCON physical planning norms (para 2.37)have often been exceeded and unnecessarily costly standards applied. Consequently the huge sums invested have not always produced the expected returns. With respect to capital development, there are two pressing issues. First, several second- and third-phase universities maintain both "temporary* and *permanent* campus sites, and as there is little new building work in progress, one can anti- cipate that for many more years there will be disruptive split campuses with shuttle services between them. Second, a total of N1.2 billion is said to be required to complete all of the unfinished buildings (para 2.36). In addres- sing these issues there are a number of options. Unfinished buildings could simply be written off for the time being, enrollments frozen, and the cur- rently small capital grants used to rehabilitate or redesign existing buildings. Alternatively, the infrastructural work could dribble on at a slow pace with the low level of capital grants, and the temporary sites allowed to gradually run down. Another option would be to inject signifi- cantly more capital, either directly from federal sources or through an external loan. As this injection is likely to be much less than N1.2 billion, there would remain the need to prioritize the existing university programs, with priority given to those with the highest manpower demand and where a small injection of capital would enable economies of scale to be realized. Further options would be to cater only to the second-phase uni- versities to meet the needs of their projected 1990191 enrollments or to concentrate nationally on particular faculties. Another option would be to gradually bring the third-phase universities up to an economic level of operation with about 3,500 students. Foreign Exchange 6.17 Nigerian iniversities are affected in a variety of ways by the depreciation of the Naira. For example, 95% of books and periodicals are imported and their prices have risen significantly. At the University of Xano the library's total book and periodicals budget now only pays for a reduced number of periodicals, and the same situation exists at most of the other universities (para 2.41). With the cost of books to students also increasing, even greater use is being made of the libraries, thus exacer- bating the problem of book and periodical shortages. Other educational materials, particularly those used in science teaching, are likewise largely imported. * 57 - 6.18 An equally severe effect of the currency depreciation is likely to be the termination o. non-renewal of contracts by expatriates as the foreign exchange realizable from savings decreases in value (paras 1.15 and 6.7). At several of the northern universities, where a majority of the senior lecturers and professorial staff are expatriates, many are resigning their posts. 6.19 There is one area where the depreciation of the Naira might have a beneficial impact and that is staff development. It is likely that Nigerian academics will now look more toward pursuing postgraduate training within Nigeria rather than in Europe or North America as has been the case in the past. 6.20 Hopefully, also the high cost of foreign exchange will encourage the universities to pay more attention to conserving supplies and to main- taining and repairing equipment rather than merely replacing out-of-order items. Course Rationalization 6.21 Despite the difficulties involved, some rationalization of course offerings among the various first- and second-phase universities is needed, particularly in light of the wide range of unit costs (para 5.12). This would be more feasible if some form of a national university teaching service could be set up, thus enabling staff from a discontinued department or faculty to move to a similar program at another university, as suggested in para 6.7. 6.22 Equally necessary, and even more feasible, would be to curtail the creation of new faculties at the Federal Universities of Technology (para 1.6) and discourage their creation at the state universities, unless all existing faculties in the same subject area are working at full capacity. Privatisation and Iniversity Enterprises 6.23 Most of the universities have moved rapidly and comprehensively over the past few years to ensure that activities such as the bookshop, printing press, guest houses, and staff club are self-financing. Some have gone further and begun to establish what are expected to be profit-making activities. All have received federal funds for university farms. The study team was not convinced that the universities should undertake large-scale income-generati"g activities if these are not directly related to the func- tioning of the universities themselves. This is because it was felt, first, that university staff do not necessarily have the aptitude to manage com- mercial enterprises; and second, such non-academic activities would have a tendency to distract the universities from their principal functions of teaching and research. Nonetheless, all possibilities for privatization should be examined, to determine which economic activities may be the most appropriate and also how students and teaching staff could be involved in these activities as a regular part of the academic program. This is now especially urgent, as the Federal Government would like 50% of university activities to be financed through extra-budgetary sources within 10 years. * 58 - 6.24 Another possibility, considered favorably by the study team, involves the leasing out of university property and other university enterprises. User Fees 6.25 As soon as possible, realistic fees should be charged for all services provided by the universities to their staff and these services should become self-financing. This would cover, for example, schools, health care, recreation, housing rental, repairs, and all utilities such as elec- tricity, water supply and refuse disposal. The principle to adopt would be to ensure that university campus residents are provided the same level of free services as are comparable groups living off-campus in nearby cities, and that higher levels of services are charged for at full cost. However, care should be taken not to reduce too rapidly any special incentives or perks of the university staff. 6.26 With regard to student accommodations, some new initiative is required. Government policy is to provide accommodations for only 30% of the students, yet it is also policy to encourage the universities to be located several miles from urban centers because land there is more available and cheaper. The result is that alternative modern-style accommodations are not available and there are high levels of "squatting" in the hostels (para 2.39). This places too great a stress on existing facilities, especially utilities. Either the Government should provide funds for up- grading existing utilities, or find some way to encourage private builders and landlords to operate hostels near university campuses. In either case, space much less lavish than previously thought necessary should be provided; moreover, the charge for accommodations is likely to be above the current N90 a year and probably on the order of N300 a year. Student Fees 6.27 Fee policies for tuition, accommodations and meals have varied through the years and an understanding of their effect on equity entails a detailed knowledge of the distribution of scholarships that is not yet available. Government is currently committed to providing tuition-free education at the undergraduate level in federal universities. If this policy is to change in the future, Government could use fees not only to raise revenue for the universities and decrease the funding required from the Federal Government, but also to direct students away from the arts into the scientific and professional disciplines. For example, two levels of tuition fees for undergraduate students could be established, with both designed to cover about 20% of unit recurrent costs. The first level of fees could be set at about 25% of unit costs for students in the arts, ,law or any subject where there is a high demand for places andlor where private returns are high (e.g., medicine). The second level could be set at about 15% of actual unit costs for students in science and other subjects where there is less demand for places but where the Government wants enrollments to increase the most rapidly. Lower fees might also be charged to women students, northerners, and other under-represented groups. Given the huge excess demand for uni- versity places, there does seem to be much scope for increasing fees. Fees varying from 1500 to 11,000, or 201 of unit recurrent costs, would seem to be an appropriate starting point. in addition, postgraduate fees (para 6.5) * 59 - should be fixed at a level sufficient to cover all direct teaching costs of those programs. Finally, in order to provide some incentive for the private sector to provide student accommodations, boarding fees should be gradually increased to cover costs. As these fees will place a considerable burden on those students who come from the lower socioeconomic groups, some extended system of federal and state scholarships or loans will be necessary. 6.28 The existing student loan scheme in Nigeria has been unsuccessful in that the rate of pay-back has been insignificant. Admittedly, graduates are difficult to trace for repayment. Current thinking is to have loans guaranteed by the student's community so as to increase moral pressure on the student to repay. In the context of a rapidly expanding university system, the introduction of significant tuition and boarding fees, high demand for places, and declining federal and state revenues, the introduction of an effective loan scheme is an option that merits serious consideration. Employment 6.29 Given the large amount of public resources consumed by the univer- sities, the relative lack of knowledge regarding the current employment experience of graduates requires attention. This is particularly so in light of the 1984/85 survey (para 3.6), which showed that at the time of completing their one-year NYSC service, only 4.42 of university graduates had a job to go to and a year later one-third remained unemployed. Decisions regarding the rationalization of courses, the development of postgraduate programs, the orientation and status of new universities and campuses, loan repayment schemes, further development of second-phase universities and so on, all need a large amount of information regarding the current and projected labor market supplyidemand situation. In addition, tracer studies on graduates of different faculties and universities should be carried out as soon as possible. Manasement Information System 6.30 It is apparent that many of the most crucial decisions related to the development of particular universities have been based on geopolitical decisions and not on sound management principles. The many inefficiencies -- starting many building projects on a campus at the same time with insuffi- cient funds to complete any of them. the distortion of spending priorities, the running of uneconomic postgraduate programs and over-expenditure on administrative items -- are partly attributable to policymakers not being aware of the longer-term implications of their short-term decisions. It is therefore suggested that NUC develop a computer-based management information system (MIS), to be used especially in the enforcement of various norms (staffing, recurrent costing, capital costing and space norms) related to the use of scarce resources, and that individual universities be given incentives to develop their own MIS and to hook up with NUC's system. - 60 - Further Studies 6.31 While it has been possible in this sector study to identify some of the major areas where policy changes are necessary, and also to identify some areas where foreign assistance or investment might be necessary, further study and analysis are needed before fully detailed proposals can be made. The following additional work has been identified - tracer studies on recent university graduates; - socioeconomic profile of university students disaggregated by initial geographical residence; - action research to develop a system designed to ensure that loans taken to cover fees and other expenses are actually reimbursed; - a study on income-generating possibilities at the universities and the extent to which these are integrated with teaching and research; - survey of use factors in classrooms and laboratories, including assumptions about lengthening the school day and year; - simplification of existing space norms; - identification of most pressing maintenance and rehabilitation needs for equipment, buildings and services, including proposing a maintenance system; - studies on student wastage and the implications for enrollment policy; - studies on teacher workload; - calculation of the levels of subsidy received by the whole university population relative to comparable population groups; - the development of policy related to university research based on an examination of the extent, effectiveness and organization of current efforts; and - the demand for postgraduates, their unit costs, and advantages and disadvantages of concentrating programs at particular universities. Investment Requirements 6.32 On the basis of a preliminary analysis and discussions with Nigerian officials, the following preliminary list of the most urgent invest- ment requirements over the next five years was drawn up by the team: - developing, equipping and supplying a maintenance service at selected universities for scientific and technological supplies and equipment; * 61 - - maintenance and repair of existing physical plant, and infra- structure at the universities; - establishment of a management information system (MIS) at each university, and also nationally at NUC, for administration, budgeting and planning purposes (generally, existing computing facilities could be used); - gradual expansion of third-phase universities where substantial economies of scale can be achieved; - in exceptional cases, construction of new teaching space or completion of unfinished buildings, if this can be justified in terms of the actual utilization of similar space at the same university; - providing capital and technical assistance for a reorganized student loan service; - financing mainly Nigerian participation in subject panels designed to further rationalize course offerings among universities; propose curriculum adaptations designed to improve the quality of teaching and make it more relevant to Nigerian conditions; and make other suggestions related to research priorities; - financing a special research fund, to be administered on the basis of peer review, with resources available for local scholars Aho are interested in carrying out research potentially of use for the development of the country; and - financing library book and periodical replenishment, including the provision of the necessary foreign exchange. 6.33 Without some changes being made in the financing pattern and cost structure of the universities, however, the investments outlined above are unlikely to solve the problems currently faced. Some of this report's more important recommendations regarding these areas that also need to be put into effect includes - a complete freeze on the opening of new departments and faculties at all first- and second-phase universities, a merging of some existing departments and faculties across federal universities, and transfer of all pre-university courses to second-cycle institutions (para 6.3); - a consolidation and rationalization of postgraduate courses among universities (para 6.5); - lengthening of the university day and year, including the intro- duction of a three-semester system (para 6.9); - a redefinition of administrative staffing norms and a phased program to ensure that they are met (para 6.12); - 62 - - introduction of new costing norms more consistent with the available resources, and increasing the share of resources for academic purposes (para 6.14); - introduction of economic levels of user fees for students and staff living on campus (para 6.25); and - significant increases in tuition fees, especially at the post- graduate level (para 6.27). - 63 - RFERENCES Alonge, E.I. (1986) Pattern and Potential of Secondary School Contribution to Science and Technology Manpower Development in Nigeriat A Survey of WASC Results 1976-82. Lagost Faculty of Education, University of Lagos. Austin, D. (1980) Universities and the Academic Gold Standard in Nigeria. Minerva XVIII, 2. Benson, C. (1985) Nigeriat Education Sector Expenditure Review. World Bank. Mimeo. Enaohwo J. (1985) Emerging Issues in Nigerian Education. Higher Education 14. Federal Ministry of Education (1985) Statistics of Education in Nigeria. Federal Office of Statistics (1985) Labor Force Sample Survey 1984. Federal Office of Statistics (1987) Labor Force Survey 1986. Hinchliffe, K. (1987) Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Croom Helm. Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (1987) Guidelines for Admissions to Nigerian Universities. Lagos, Nigeria. Kadiri A. (1986) Parameters for the Allocation of Grants to Federally Funded Universities in Nigeria. EDI World Bank seminar, Gaborone, Botswana. Mimeo. Mellanby K. (1958) The Birth of Nigeria's University. Methuen, London. Modu, C. C. (1983) Critiques of Reports on the Predictive Validity of the Joint Matriculation Examination. Lagos, Nigerias Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board for Nigerian Universities. National Manpower Board (1984) Report of the Shuttle Employment Inquiries 1983. National Manpower Board (1986) 1984 Graduate Employment Tracer Study. National Universities Commission (1986) Nigerian Universities Statistics (Federal and State Universities, 1980181 - 1984/85.) National Universities Commission. Individual University Data Sheets and Estimates of Recurrent Operating Expenses. Separately for all Federal Universities and all Years 1984/85 to 1986/87. Nigerian Student Loan Board. Its Inception, Activities, Achievements and Aspirations for the Future. Lagos. Oduleye 8. (1985) Decline in Nigerian Universities, Higher Education, 14. University Handbooks/Calendars 1984/86 Selected Federal Universities. - 64 - ANNEX A - 65 - Annex Page 1 of 17 Table A-1 Admission Selectivity Indices for First Degree Courses in Nigerian Universities Based on Apiplications and Intake for 1985/86 Actual Selectivity University Applications Intake Index Ibadan 15,610 2,214 1:7.1 Lagos 16,873 2,914 1:5.8 UNN (Naukka) 25,103 2,689 1:9.3 ABU (Zaria/Bauchi) 9,741 3,728 1:2.6 Ife 28,413 3,298 1:8.6 Benin 30,215 2,527 1:12.0 Joe 11,987 1,755 1:6.8 Calabar 13,352 1,176 1:11.4 Bayero (Kano) 1,492 911 1:1.6 Maiduguri 6,636 640 1:10.4 Sokoto 2,796 1,300 1:2.2 11orin 14,865 1,395 1:10.7 Port Harcourt 10,773 503 1:21.4 FUT Overri 1,282 318 1:4.0 FUT Akure 762 231 1:3.3 PUT Minna 192 166 1:1.2 Anambra State 747 614 1:1.2 Rivers State 1,352 495 1:2.7 Imo State 7,133 662 1:10.8 Bendel State 3,057 587 1:5.2 Ondo State 1,746 560 1:3.1 Ogun State 3,809 684 1:6.6 Cross River State 1,967 761 1:2.6 Lagos State 2,211 838 1:2.6 Total 212,114 30,966 1:6.8 Sources JAMB Notes Applications are distributed according to first choice. 66 - AnnexA Page 2 of 17 Table A-2 Total Enrollment by Institution, 1980/81 to 1984/85 Total Enrollment University 1980181 1981/82 1982183 1983184 1984/85 Ibadan 7,817 9,712 11,140 12,132 13,862 Lagos 8,690 8,575 9,055 9,601-4/ 10,126 UNN (Nsukka) 10,291 11,838 12,813 12,515 12,417 ABU (Zaria/Bauchi) 14,767 15,789 a/ 18,807 a/ 18,285 a/ 17,561 Ife 10,988 11,984 12,362 12,574 12,997 Benin 5,973 7,159 8,313 8,858 9,688 Jos 3,047 4,128 b/ 4,609 b/ 5,005 b/ 5,769 Calabar 2,798 3,892 4,320 4,890 4,871 Bayero (Kano) 2,479 2,851 3,314 3,777 4,142 Maiduguri 2,569 3,244 3,579 cl 5,255 cl 6,167 Sokoto 883 1,366 1,949 2,463 3,299 Ilorin 2,010 2,784 4,028 4,610 5,411 Port Harcourt 2,019 2,582 2,829 3,302 3,786 FUT Overri - 224 364 460 693 FUT Akure - - 149 295 419 FUT Minna - - - 131 305 Anambra State 276 535 962 1,358 1,671 Rivers State 3,184 3,685 3,776 4,376 3,397 Imo State - - 771 1,225 1,809 Bendel State - 403 1,071 1,639 1,637 Ondo State - - 131 626 1,460 Ogun State - - 432 1,058 1,483 Cross River State - - 2,387 2,738 Lagos State - - 577 Total 77,791 90,751 104,774 116,822 126,285 a/ Includes students at Bauchi which was a separate institution until 1984: 263 in 1981/82; 512 in 1982/83; 767 in 1983/84. b/ Includes students at MHakurdi which was a separate institution until 1984: 195 in 1981/82; 325 in 1982/83 and 449 in 1983/84. c/ Includes 128 students at YO1 in 1982/83, and 219 in 1983/84 when it was a separate institution. d/ Includes 234 students at Abeokuta which was a separate institution before it was merged with Lagos - 1984. -67 - Annex A Page 3 of 17 Table A-3 New Entrants ty Institution, 1980181 to 1984185 New Entrants University 1980/81 1981/82 1982/83 1983184 1984185 Ibadan 3,834 4,573 4,801 4,787 5,234 Lagos 3,634 4,760 3,250 3,296 4,189 UNN (Naukka) 3,970 3,005 3,146 2,745 3,316 ABU (Zaria/Bauchi) 5,367 8,338 8,567 8,397 8,184 Ife 4,023 2,812 3,258 3,310 3,479 Benin 2,984 3,043 1,683 3,052 3,740 Joe 1,437 1,867 1,920 1,684 2,034 Calabar 1,085 1,016 985 1,523 1,455 Bayero (Kano) 1,358 1,511 1,640 1,856 2,125 Maiduguri 212 352 1,186 1,923 1,821 Sokoto 462 672 905 1,159 1,558 Ilorin 927 1,240 1,753 1,595 1,764 Port Harcourt 1,157 1,158 957 1,393 1,847 FUT Owerri 224 180 143 273 FUT Akure - 149 167 157 FUT Minna - - 131 192 Anambra State 276 289 334 447 332 Rivers State 3,184 1,173 1,037 1,065 1,078 Emo State - - 771 469 584 Bendel State - 403 692 642 310 Ondo State - - 131 491 833 Ogun State - - 432 626 416 Cross River State * - - 2,387 762 Lagos State - - 577 Total 33,910 36,456 37,777 43,522 40,260 Notes Includes entrants into pre-university basic studies courses, and postgraduate courses, thus figures are very much higher than in Table A-1. 一68一A。。•xA h面－布庇17 登遛―”二”’·：森，二 邊邊！&：森”&”森”&’·召 喜―&＃森召”；召：’森””攙 邊！”發姿””斗’義”“︰ ，畫11卜偶啊．。，．。。I。。。中 讓！&&&:,, 月―’乏”&’森”&&&”易 戶變他11卜鉤必。I倘。。．0 11, 中登哈蠱常，”畸．1婦！彎參l磁I藝 廈―寫’&&&:, 臣粹―&:”婪每”華”&&&: &！•．，••．1•參1 1 11••， 發邊！萬’:. 逐l蔆藝―斗：”森”&&&&&：華 &！亡g究．叩彎彎’吋t，仰h,，•·h j It認I姨馴禺發••編潤 痲：一邊― 倡l三鑒》巒作巒巒‘究’角’h&&”究 名―細！編萬寫痲卜馴綴嬌 ,.&r名I》儲鰓拙’•煙煙伶’憤究‘”憤 森I濟l壇！一，萬為”跚．綢“認 食！遞―tl》究h仲喪’究吃h’他鰓”’悵 卜’召！藝I一啼．瀆”必網•濟“& 遛―遞： &：皂I》’震鰓究”究吃吃’h’然”怏 雙l遞―一騙騙，為實畸編．綢 jl唱I騙驕雲．零‘淌囊 唱1 dl 讓―。―”驕召’召江森：’要’騙”婪 蒙―&：森蝨召’：森婪審雙’&”姿 必！召森乏日婪蘇邊森認乏攙‘&‘委 ，瞥響婦•二祠•網蔔發蔥賽曉i露華 必『專•認食•綢曉麗卜．一，輪認 為！ 看―森森衫婪露森森含森騙乏”’蔆 實I綢•潤為黝，馴為露認I緝召 1！為．雲劊一鴉倘為啼瀾―t蠶 零．＿不＿11遺邊 。。邊、。蔆廈靈邊1 11召―言邊湯 _.lj酒奮了才l＿瞥。邊。萬緝j。。。豐。瀾―荔邊邊 曆l祖憤＿屆煙纏1日藝牘藝轟留必遞很』奮邊他蠶】―屆11 邊―I身萬•由名牌占a讓“】讓遞邊墓邊。渥”占辟審！》》， 69 -A Page 5 of 17 Table A-5 Catesorles of Academic Staff by Faculty-1986/80 at 16 Federal Universities Along with Enrollment h Faculty Senior Lecturer* Prof. Lecturer* Aset. Loot. Assoc. Prof. Snp. Ron. Res. & Jr. student LOCU I M and Rogders Follows Lge: Others Total Mon-Nigerlan Enrollment Administration 20 62 172 262 (33) 60774 Agriculture 129 Ise 419 714 (01) 5$960 Arto/Humanitles 194 M 979 i'm 0") 150438 Earth & Mineral Science 5 is 44 62 (a) 810 Education in 243 723 1,688 (116) Is'M EnSineering/Tocknology IN Is? 497 744 (125) 98715 Environmental D"Illn 25 53 162 240 (62) 4$618 LOW 40 49 149 2" (57) 6,303 iledialne/Hoolth Sclones 3" sw 641 loss? (178) OSM Neural $clones 243 407 1,073 10723 (284) 15#246 Pharmacy 25 37 126 Ise (31) 2's" Social sciences 127 2" 612 $69 (98) 14,074 Veterinary klodlelne 54 63 lie 295 (33) 1,121 SBS/Gon. & R m I a I ---1 160 194 (46) 2,157 Ij4I$ 29172 50731 *$$is (10945) 116j248 - 70 - A å01% Page 6 of 17 Tabie A-6 orow k, Enrollmont and Academio t*ff by InstItutenB~n 1988181 and 1984/86 (Nigerin Staff in Parønthes~s) Nigerlans ss Locatlon of Total Enrollmnt Academlo-Saff In ,~ . % of Staff Ins1uton 1984185 190/je 1984.9, 1988181 5budente lf e 1984S 19mLe1 Federal UnIverslty Ibadan 18,882 7,817 1,0686 (987) 976 (882) 77 18 98 91 Lagos (Main) 9,822 8,696 1,02 (985) 741 (684) 18 89 94 92 Lago* (Abekuta) 884 - 22 (18) - - - - 82 - Neukka 12,417 1,291 892 (736) 899 (664) 21 28 88 81 Zarle (Mln) 16,828 14,767 1,115 (828) 1,142 (778) 12 (-2) 74 8 Zarla (Bauchl) 1,8 - 112 (72) - - - - 84 - Ife 12,997 18,988 983 (88g) 766 (851) 18 28 9 88 enin 9,688 5,978 869 (689) 428 (381) 62 66 88 8 Jo« (Min) 6,172 8,847 888 (289) 28 (148) 78 52 88 59 Jo (Makurdi) s97 - 88 (32) - - - - 58 - Calabar 4,871 2,798 419 (3885) 885 (178) 74 87 8 57 Kano 4,142 2,479 189 (280) 881 (184) 87 18 68 61 Maldugurl (Main) 6,818 2,689 58 (345) 88 (149) 184 62 89 46 Maldugul (Yola) 161 - 84 (28) - - - - 82 - Søkoto 8,299 888 288 (162) 179 (99) 274 47 62 66 Iførln 6,411 2,818 388 (818) 97 (79) 169 287 89 81 Port marcourt 8,786 2,819 8 (291) 246 (284) 88 44 84 88 OweerrT FUT 98 - 97 (84) - - - - 87 - Akure FUT 419 - 52 (46) - - - - 88 - Minna FUT _ , - -12 -(29) - 91 Subtob*I 111,518 74,381 8,760 (7,195) 8,449 (4,954) 8 86 82 77 State Unlverølty Anambr* 1,871 276 95 (87) 82 (81) SU 197 92 97 Rive. 8,897 8,184 821 (244) 186 (188) 7 74 78 72 Is 1,889 - 142 (188) - - Bende 1,687 - 167 (127) - - Ond* 1,488 - 92 (77) - - Ogun 1,488 - 142 (188) - - Cros River 2,788 - 232 (28) - - Lage .-,. . - - ..: - -- .- - Subtotai 14.772 .8_.48 .268 ,1.9U --217 QL64), 387 4 7_ 7 Grand Toa l 128,285 77,791 18,818 (8,274) 6,686 (8,118) 62 51 82 77 -71- Annex A Page 7 of 17 Table A-7 Information on Actual Staff Positions, 1985186 Other Snr. Snr. Jr. Institution Teachers Academic Tech. Admin. Staff Total Ibadan 1,065 31 676 592 3,990 6,354 Lagos 826 198 403 765 2,972 5,164 Abeokuta 24 1 25 40 201 291 Nsukka 808 13 250 735 4,284 6,090 Zaria Main 1,132 - 293 344 4,257 6,026 Zaria Bauchi 152 16 80 109 416 773 Ife main 956 152 368 469 3,078 5,023 Ife Adeyemi 85 16 25 286 412 Benin 676 13 212 442 2,378 3,721 Jos Main 415 54 85 226 1,598 2,378 Jos Makurdi 68 6 65 56 379 574 Calabar 393 2 196 266 1,608 2,465 Kano 348 41 34 206 1,045 1,674 Maiduguri 575 - 18 152 1,703 2,478 Yola 40 - 1 37 195 273 Sokoto 289 18 63 118 807 1,295 Ilorin 354 22 126 282 1,212 1,996 Port Harcourt 376 4 201 176 1,192 1,949 Overri PUT 113 7 40 125 467 752 Akure PUT 53 14 38 45 285 435 Minna PUT 35 - 44 36 155 240 Sub-Total 8,793 592 3,234 5,246 32,508 50,373 Anambra 147 N.A. 19 96 892 N.A. Rivers State 273 53 158 154 1,168 1,806 Imo State N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. Bendel State 346 N.A. 79 253 1,107 N.A. Ondo State 120 N.A. 54 20 262 N.A. Ogun State 241 N.A. 52 43 252 N.A. Cross Rivers 261 N.A. 7 51 765 N.A. Lagos State 111 N.A. 39 38 7 NAL Sub-Total 1,499+ 53+ 408+ 666+ 4,833+ 7,459+ Grand Total 10,292+ 4+ 3.62+ 5.912+ 37,341+ 57,832+ -72- Annex A Page 8 of 17 Table A-8 Suumary of Distribution and Level of 121 Subiects of Study Among 24 Universities Level of Study 1/ University U G P Total Ibadan 9 69 3 81 Lagos 31 51 - 82 U. Nigeria (Nsukka) 17 60 7 84 Ahmadu Bello 18 62 13 93 Ife 23 55 4 82 Benin 26 21 6 53 Jos 37 18 8 63 Calabar 13 16 2 31 Kano 20 25 3 48 Maiduguri 40 22 6 68 Sokoto 35 - 1 36 Ilorin 39 10 1 50 Port Harcourt 43 12 7 62 F.U.T., Overri 23 - - 23 F.U.T., Akure 20 - 20 F.U.T., Minna 12 - - 12 Anambra State 9 14 1 24 Rivers State 10 24 1 35 Imo State 23 - - 23 Bendel State 16 - - 16 Ondo State 13 - - 13 Ogun State 13 - - 15 Cross River State 19 - - 19 Lagos State 13 - - 13 1/ U - Subjects of study at undergraduate level only. G - Subjects at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. P - Subjects at postgraduate level only. -73 - Annex A Page 9 of 17 Table A-9 Analysis of Staff Development Federal Universities, 1985186 Locat on of Doctora I Post-Doctora I Non- Institution igrle Overseas Nigeria Overseas Aced Conference Ibadan 18 82 s o Sf 9 Lagos 5 21 8 87 S$ 65 Abookuta 2 - - - 2 - Nsukka - 24 18 - 21 - Zarts 11 63 2 8 20 5 (Bauchi) 89 18 - 5 5 8 Ife 148 8 - - 212 196 (Adeyeml) 18 - - - 11 88 Benin 75 24 - s 8 128 Joe 88 25 - 18 10 20 (Makurdi) 2o 8 - - 8 22 Calabar 85 20 42 78 15 - Kane 8 4 4 16 48 - Maidugurt o 84 10 18 52 26 (Yo1) 0 9 8 2 0 11 Sokoto 9 - * 1 8 - Ilorift 2 88 - - 15 47 Port Harcourt g/ No InformatIon at NUC Owerr FUT 8 4 - - 10 18 Akurl FUT 8 8 - - - Sna PUT 8 -- 1 8 Total 591 449 74 15 0o 648 l1 Does not include 22 pro-doctoral scholarships at unspecified locations nor 10 visiting professors and lectureships. g/ Details of staff development for PH not available at NUC. - 74 - Annex A Page 10 of 17 Table A-10 Staff Housing at Federal Universities, 1985/86 Senlor støff Junior Støff In In In University Universty Ellgible Rented Ownød Owned for Housing Housing Housing Inst1tution mousina Unit. Unitø Tot* Unit* Ibadan 2,19 508 498 99 5lM Lagos Main Caupus 1,828 740 415 1,166 0 Abeokuta Campu* 62 62 - 82 - Nigeria 1,804 206 591 797 27 Ah~udu Bollo M. Campus 1,769 198 1,078 1,269 182 sauchI Campus 148 68 8 188 80 Ifo 1,966 880 626 900 60 Benin 962 s0 281 788 64 Joa Main Campus 661 91 889 480 85 Makurdi Campus 118 70 42 112 3 Calabar 464 176 281 407 - Kano 482 180 278 406 82 Maiduguri Main Campus 776 114 297 411 80 Yola Campus 77 - 77 77 - Sokoto 418 162 165 807 89 Ilorin 784 184 194 828 - Port Harcourt 402 195 142 887 28 F.U.T. 0erri 285 109 88 146 7 F.U.T. Akure 168 82 62 84 - P.U.T. Minna 88 8 18 86 - - 75 - Annex A Page 11 of 17 Table A-11 Student Housina at Federal Universities, 1985-86 No. in University Institution Enrollment Owned Housing Ibadan 12,350 6,559 Lagos - Main Campus 10,665 6,402 Abeokuta 413 - Nsukka 12,490 8,522 Abmadu Bello-Zaria 14,846 10,747 Bauchi 669 295 Ife 12,128 7,706 Benin 9,609 2,620 Jos - Main Campus 5,500 2,002 Makurdi 824 456 Calabar 4,670 2,427 Kano 4,237 2,078 Maiduguri - Main (mpus 5,542 3,356 Yola 236 236 Sokoto 3,638 1,684 Ilorin 5,847 3,084 Port Harcourt 4,519 2,326 F.U.T., Owerri 1,010 670 F.U.T, Akure 623 488 F.U.T., Minna 427 256 Source: NUC. Universities tend to under-report the number of students in hostels. For example, in Benin the hostels were built for 2,620 students, but now accommodate legally over 6,000 students, as three extra beds have been put in each room. - 76 - Annex A Page 12 of 17 Table A-12 Library Statistics at Federal Universities. 1985-86 Books A Books per Periodicals/ Institution References Student Journals Micro-flies Ibadan 505,660 40 149,775 87,6062 Lagos - Main Campus 860,774 28 O86 6,785 Abookuta Campus 18,040 82 289 - Nsukka 418,787 88 80,9 5,164 Reels Ahmadu Bello - Main Campus 506,0O6 84 8,848 8,648 Bauchi Campus 20,666 8 792 - Its 818,888 20 6,842 89,800 Benin 98,902 1 8,919 862 Joe - Main Campus 118,410 21 2,784 784 Makurdi Campus 11,470 14 68 - Calaber 88,888 18 2,8989* S Kano 148,658 85 82,620 886 Maldugurl - Main Campus 91,254 10 1,5 8 2 Rolls Yola Campus 8,941 17 4,452 - Sokoto* 02,850 19 1,864 N.A. Ilorin N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. Port Harcourt 62,199 12 1,617 88 Owerri FUT 10,716 17 887 1 Akure FUT 12,712 20 227 1,682 Minna FUT 6,048 18 1,757 - * 1984185 data; N.A. N Not available. -77 - Annex A Page 13 of 17 Table A-13 University Expenditure as Proportion of Total Federal Expenditure on Education 1981-87 (N m) Total Federal Total Federal Year Education Expenditure Government Grants 2 to Universities (1)^ 100 (1) (2) (3) 1981 1383 672 48.6 1982 1162 539 46.3 1983 960 492 51.3 1984 744 462 62.1 1985 784 483 61.6 1986 997 461 46.2 1987 653 396 60.6 Source: See text, para 4.2, Tables 14, 15 and 16. Notes: (1) Expenditures are both recurrent and capital (2) As indicated in the text, primary plus most of secondary and teacher education are the responsibility of state and local governments. As a proportion of total state and federal government expenditures on education, university expenditure varied between 17.3 and 18.8 percent between 1981 and 1984. - 78 - Annex A Page 14 of 17 Table A-14 University Unit Costs in Current and Constant Prices 1980181 to 1985/86 Federal Unit Cost Unit Cost Year Enrollments Grants (current Prices) (1982 prices) N N N 1980/81 69,725 321 4,604 1981182 82,952 335 4,038 4,038 1982183 97,361 371 3,800 3,382 1983/84 103,913 428 4,119 3,272 1984185 111,513 422 3,784 2,762 1985/86 110,443 415 3,758 2,518 Sourcet See text Notes: The calculations based on constant prices utilize the following datas (1) On average, across all federal universities, 59 percent of expenditures are on salaries (see Chapter 5). Since 1982, wage rates have not increased but it is assumed that increments and promotions add 5 percent annually to the wage bill. (2) For non-wage expenditures, World Bank inflation estimates of 20 percent a year 1980-84, 5.5 percent for 1985, and 7 percent for 1986 are used. - 79 - Annex A Page 15 of 17 Table A-15 Capital Grants to Federal Universities 1980-87 (MNm) University 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 Ibadan 18.0 19.2 14.8 8.4 1.4 1.7 6.5 5.0 Lagos 17.0 20.0 7.9 5.4 1.3 1.7 6.5 4.5 Nsukka 16.5 27.2 13.9 5.4 1.4 1.7 6.5 5.0 Zaria 21.5 23.0 8.3 6.2 1.4 1.7 6.5 5.0 Ife 16.5 16.0 8.0 5.4 1.4 1.7 6.5 5.0 Benin 18.0 26.4 11.0 5.4 1.4 1.7 6.7 3.0 Jos 14.0 16.9 13.0 5.8 1.9 2.3 7.7 5.0 Calabar 14.0 21.0 10.0 5.8 1.9 2.3 7.7 5.0 Kano 14.0 21.0 10.0 5.8 1.9 2.3 7.7 4.0 Maiduguri 14.5 21.0 10.0 5.8 2.0 2.3 7.7 4.5 Sokoto 14.5 21.0 12.0 5.8 1.9 2.3 7.7 4.0 Ilorin 15.8 32.0 10.0 5.8 2.0 2.3 7.7 4.0 Port Harcourt 14.4 27.0 12.0 5.8 2.3 2.3 7.7 5.0 Bauchi 2.0 18.5 14.5 6.8 2.0 1.7 7.4 3.0 Makurdi 18.5 11.0 6.8 2.0 1.7 7.4 3.0 Overri 18.5 11.0 6.8 2.0 2.6 7.9 4.0 Akure 2.0 11.0 6.8 2.0 2.6 7.9 3.0 Yola 2.0 11.0 6.8 2.0 1.7 7.4 3.0 Abeokuta 2.4 8.2 2.0 1.7 7.4 3.0 Minna 2.4 8.2 2.0 2.6 7.9 3.0 Open University 0.5 2.5 - - - - Total 210.5 351.3 204.4 121.5 34.5 41.4 145.6 81.0 Sources National Universities Commission and Federal Government Estimates Notes The 1986 allocation included N5m per university campus for rehabilitation. - 80 - Annex A Page 16 of 17 Table A-16 Scholarships for Hisher Education Students, Various States and Years (N m) State Year Scholarships Total i3 Education (4) x 100 Recurrent (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Borno 1986 6.16 46.28 13.3 Kaduna 1985 10.74 79.46 13.5 Niger 1985 4.80 31.89 15.1 Ogun 1984 1,19 74.00 1.6 Kano 1986 8.40 60.00 14.0 Source: State Estimates -81 - AnnexA Page 17 of 17 Table A-17 Federal Goveroent Postgraduate Scholarships by Subject and Location 1981182 to 1983/84 Subject 1981/82 1982183 198384 1984185 C985/86 1986187 1987/88* Agriculture 296 282 363 - - - + Education 341 340 415 - - - + Engineering 436 502 479 - - + Environmental Studies 106 207 194 - - - + Humanities 220 255 228 - - - + Hedicine 277 223 143 - - - + Para Meds. 155 82 115 - - - + Science 262 320 325 - - + Social Science 615 672 258 - - - + Business Studies 374 - - - + Total 2708 2884 2894 None None None 800 X geld in Nigeria 63 58 62 100 Sources Federal Ministry of Education (1985) Statistics of Education in Nigeria 1980-84 plus personal communication, Federal Scholarship Board. * Scholarships in 1987/88 given for postgraduate studies only. 戶 ．萬 叫 必 他 - 83 - &wex B Page 1 of 8 UNIVERSITY CAIE STUDIES 1. Members of the study team visited a sample of nine universities in different parts of the countrys seven federal universities (four first- phase, two second-phase. and one third-phase) and tvo state universities. In the case studies described below, analyses of staff, students, costs and financing are not included, as that information is covered in the main body of the report. What is included here is information that cannot easily be dealt with in the more precise analyses in Chapters 1-5. but from which one may draw important lessons for university development. First-Phase Universities Ibadan 2. The University of Ibadan was founded in 1948 as a college affili- ated with the University of London, and in 1962 it attained full indepen- dence. Established long before any of the other universities in the country, it has served as a pattern or model which all of the more recently estab- lished universities have been trying to emulate. Because it is considerably older than any of the other universities, from lbadan one can gain an impres- sion of where Nigerian universities are headed, unless there is a major change in direction. 3. For example, teachers and researchers make up only 17Z of the total staff at Ibadant almost 9OZ of them have Ph.Ds., less than 52 of teaching expenditures are devoted to non-personnel costs, and there are large numbers of unfilled academic vacancies (e.g., 362 in the faculty of engineering). Basically, the budget for lbadan, the oldest and most prestigious university in the country, is turning into a salary budget, largely used for paying non- teaching staff. 4. The physical infrastructure at the campus is beginning to break down. Water supply is completely insufficient for the number of students and staff on campus; and cuts in cleaning and maintenance staff, without an attempt to increase student involvement, have led to a general degeneration of buildings and a piling up of uncollected garbage. 5. Research is underfunded. In 1984i85 only 1.8X of the university's budget vent to organized research units, and only 0.3% went to other research. With further cuts over the past few years, this proportion has probably fallen. 6. Finally, it is significant to note that student fees declined from 12.3Z of total income in 1971/72 to only O.SZ in 1984/85. Lagoe 7. The University of Lagos was founded in 1962. Unlike most, if not all of the other federal universities, only a 1,000-acre site was provided, most of vhich was a swamp that needed to be filled in. This site is now surrounded by built-up areas, and can be considered as part of the Lagos metropolitan area. The university was built using a range of different - 84 - Annex B Page 2 of 8 styles -- from the colonial to the ultra-modern, with the most expensive and luxurious building being the new administrative tower. Unlike other univer- sities, there do not seem to be any unfinished buildings on campus, nor is there a split campus requiring transporting students from one site to another. However, one of the Federal Universities of Technology was *integrated' into Lagos University, but as its campus is 104 miles away and as it has had a separate budget since this integration, it cannot really be considered as a part of Lagos University. 8. One of the more interesting innovations at Lagos University was the formation of the Correspondence and Open Studies Institute (COSIT) in 1976. In 1984/85 this institute enrolled 4,583 correspondence students, which represented 292 of the total enrollment of the university. The institute has 12 study centers in different parts of the country where students can study through distance learning methods. All students enrolled in COSIT spend four full-time weeks a year in residence on campus (during the university vaca- tion) for lectures, followed by exams. When successful, they are awarded the same degree as other students at the university. Currently, COSIT offers a variety of courses in accountancy, business administration, education and science education. Until the 1985/86 academic year, no fees were charged for these courses. In 1986/87, fees (only nominal) began to be charged, 9. Another interesting institution is the Human Resources Research U-tt, which since 1973 has been carrying out a wide range of extremely useful and relevant research studies, starting with a study on the Socioeconomic Background of Nigerian University Students, and continuing with various studies crucial for any systematic planning of university education (e.g., Student Wastage in Nigerian Universities). In addition, it has completed studies on aspects of employment, demography, and incomes. 10. Although Lagos University faces budgetary problems in conmon with most other universities and has 292 of its teaching posts in science un- filled, it has been trying to expand postgraduate enrollments very rapidly. Since the creation of a postgraduate school in 1981/82, enrollments of post- graduates have been growing at almost 102 p.a. 11. Overall, one gets the impression from the University of Lagos of some spare capacity in administration, while at the same time student and teaching facilities are being used (in term time) to near their full capacity. Benin 12. The University of Benin started in 1970 as an Institute of Tech- nology. In 1972 it became a state university and in 1975 was taken over by the Federal Government as a federal university. It is interesting to note that although it is a federal university, 60.42 of its students originate from the state in which the university is situated -- Bendel State. 13. The university has two campusess the old campus near the center of town, and the new (main) campus about 30 km away (NO.6 bus fare) with a 4,600-acre site, most of which is not being used. The majority of students and faculties are zow on the new site. The old site has, among others, the Institute of Education, Institute of Public Administration, Faculty of - 85 - Annex B Page 3 of 8 Creative Arts (which has never been approved by NUC), the Department of Adult Education and Extra Mural Studies (mainly pre-university courses but also University of London external degrees), and the School of Postgraduate Studies. The university used to run a bus service between the two campuses which was recently discontinued for economic reasons. 14. The main campus is split in half by a river, hence absolutely no development has taken place on the far side (3,560 acres). Even on the developed side of the campus (1,044 acres), buildings are very spread out and there appears to be more space than might be needed for many years to come. 15. Apart from the student hostels, the physical facilities at the campus do not seem to have a high rate of utilization. For example, in mid- day, at about 1:00 p.m., none of the laboratories in the Faculty of Science were being used. Later on, at about 3:00 p.m. only about two-thirds of the engineering workshops were being used. 16. Although the university has not received a capital budgetary allocation for several years, work is continuing on the four unfinished building sites on campus (Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Law, extension of the Faculty of Engineering, and the road and bridge joining the two divided parts of the campus). Current construction, with a total value of about N24 million, is being carried out using "savings' from earlier budgetary alloca- tions. The 1986 rehabilitation grant from NUC has not been used to repair or rehabilitate any building, but instead has been used to build a new bursar's office. 17. There is an acute shortage of houses for faculty, and the univer- sity rents 489 units in town. It is difficult for the university to provide houses on campus because the existing pattern includes large two- story houses with four bedrooms, leading to expectations of a level which staff could never afford if they were renting themselves. Again, there seems to be a problem of a lack of application of appropriate standards. 18. Originally, the student hostels were likewise designed to inappro- priate standards. For example, the bedroom (168 sq. ft.) was designed to accommodate only two students. As demand for hostel places increased, the university put in more beds, so that now the same room officially accom- modates five students. Further pressure has led to the students who are officially accommodated to sublet their spaces, so that now many rooms have five official students and up to five squatters. 19. The new system of students buying their own food, introduced with the 1985/86 academic year, was observed by team members. At various places on campus there were a number of small, private local foodshops serving African food from morning to night. Students would come to eat at any time of day, and on average would spend N1 to N1.5 per meal, or 13 to N4.5 per day. Before this "Bukateria" system was introduced, students had to pay N1.5 per day to the university and NUC would provide an additional 14.5 per day; still, students would complain about the low quality of the food. Now there are no complaints and no government contribution. 86- Annex B Page 4 of 8 Ahmadu Bello 20. Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, was founded in 1961 as a state university to serve the northern region. In August 1975 the university was taken over by the Federal Government. Partly because of the large number of pre-university students studying at ABU in preparation for formal entry into university, and partly because until 1975 it was the only university serving the northern states, it has the highest enrollment of all Nigerian univarsities. Apart from the main campus, it has affiliated with it insti- tutes of administration, education and agriculture. As one of the first- phase universities, its major building program has been completed, but a large amount of resources is required for rehabilitation. In recent years, considerable funding for this rehabilitations has come from reserves, but these are now said to be exhausted. 21. The effects of limitations on funding can be seen in several areas. Since 1981, staff retzruitment has had to be individually sanctioned by the Vice Chancellor; but even so, where vacancies exist and can be filled there are difficulties in recruiting and 50% of offers are said not to be taken up. In the library, which is the country's second largest after Ibadan, journal subscriptions have been reduced since 1982 and outstanding invoices in various stages of repayment total N2 million. The librarian has currently been told to place no orders for new books. 22. Although the universities do not administer state government scholarships, it is believed that most students at Ahmadu Bello receive one. Of the eight northernmost states, five issue scholarships to all indigenous students, while the other three issue them to most of these students. 23. Off the main campus, the Agricultural Research Institute has had a severe cut in its budget, and the Agricultural Colleges are hardly functioning. 24. In an attempt to generate income, Ahmadu Bello recently launched a pharmaceutical company in addition to the obligatory farm and consultancy unit, found in all other universities. The study team has its doubts, here as elsewhere, as to whether universities are appropriate organizations to run productive enterprises not directly related to teaching. 25. Government policy is to encourage a postgraduate population equal to 25Z of total enrollments at the older universities. At Ahmadu Bello, currently over 2,000 postgraduates are registered, some as far back as 1977. A total of 450 new students registered in 1984/85 and 663 in 1985/86. Despite these relatively large aggregate numbers, in some courses enrollments were very small. Taking the latter of these two years, there was one student in French, microbiology, crop protection, agricultural engineering, parasi- tology and private law. In all, 20 programs had between one and four students. - 87 - Annex B Page 5 of 8 Second-Phase Universities 26. Originally, a college of Ahmadu Bello University, the University of Kano was upgraded in 1975 to become a full federal university. The univer- sity is now a two-campus university experiencing a substantial slowdown in its building program. Earollments are currently around half of those expected according to its Master Plan, which was initiated in 1979. The second phase of the building plan was due for completion in 1984, but it is estimated that the remaining work will now cost more than originally assessed for the entire phase. 27. One casualty of the halted building program is the library. The current one was b1ilt for a sitting of 250 readers, appropriate for a univer- sity of 1,000 students and staff. Current enrollment is 4,500. The library has also had cuts in recurrent expenditures. Subscriptions to journals numbered 1,600 in 1983 and are 800 today, despite new faculties of medicine and technology. Book purchases in the late 1970. were 15,000-20,000 a year and fell to 1,200 in 1986. The situation is likely to worsen due to the depreciation of the Naira. The total purchasing budget for 1987 is N360,000, whereas the new cost of existing journal subscriptions is U352,000. 28. Another aspect of university activity under pressure is research. The research fund has been cut by 50Z over the last four years. The recruit- ment and retention of academic staff are major problems. Expatriate staff, who comprise as much as 80% of the science faculty, are leaving due to problems over remittances and the falling value of the Naira, while qualified Nigerians are competed for by state governments and the private sector. 29. Faculty contact hours across departments average 14 a week, and students in science have around 8 hours a week of lectures plus another 8 hours of practicals. 30. Fourteen departments have postgraduate students. In 1984/85 these students totaled 81. In the science subjects, Masters programs are often run for between two and five students. 31. University science departments appear to have sufficient amounts of equipment, and teaching materials are not in short supply. A more serious problem is the servicing of equipment. In common with most universities, damaged equipment is often stored, waiting for some servicing personnel from outside the university. Unfortunately, no attempt has been made to make the maintenance and servicing of equipment an integral part of engineering and science courses. 32. The level of student dropouts &ppears low, apart from the Schools of Basic Studies and Medicine (rates of 21% and 27%, respectively, in 1985/86). This is partly due to the evaluation system which incorporates continuous assessment and course units and allows an additional year for those with low marks. -88- AnnexB Page 6 of 8 Port Harcourt 33. The University of Port Harcourt began classes in 1977, and unlike several of the other second-phase universities, took over virtually no physical facilities. Today, and as a reflection of the changes in fortune over the years, it has three sites -- temporary, emergency, and permanent. The original building plan required a budget of N10 million a year. Until 1981 this amount was forthcoming. Since then the annual allocations have been N8.4 m, X2.1 m, N1.9 m and 11.9 m. The major unfinished buildings are a multipurpose building to house all science departments (702 completed and requiring another N8.8 million) and the library (30? completed and requiring 115 million to complete). Staff housing units are also in short supply, and the university spends N1.4 million annually on rents. 34. In line with national policy, campus residential accommodations are available for around one-third of the students. Because the university is situated several miles from the city, alternative accommodations are diffi- cult to find and *squatting, is prevalent. The lack of both teaching and residential accommodations has resulted in an enrollment (4,5r?0) 25Z lower than planned. Over 50% of enrollments are in science subjects. In addition, 1,100 etudents are enrolled in *sandwich" courses in education. These courses are self-financing. Around 7Z of students are postgraduate, with the majority paying their own fees. Undergraduate pass rates are above 90% in the arts and 70Z-80% in science. 35. In line with other universities, there have been several efforts recently to generate additional income and reduce expenditures. The book- shop, printing press, petrol station and guest houses are now self-financing, and the farm and consultancy units are expected to make a profit. The study team, however, does not believe that university farms can ever make a profit in real terms, and suggests that at many campuses it might be more beneficial if the universities leased their excess land to farmert or developers. Third-Phase Universities Owerri 36. The Federal Universiy of Technology (FUT) at Overri is one of three FUTs that were not incorporated into existing universities. The univerpity was founded in 1980, began courses in 1981, and acquired a temporary site -- the buildings of a new federal girls college. Some addi- tional building has occurred, but the major effort has been on the new "permanent' site, 16 km outside of the town. No teaching is yet done on this site, but both the engineering and agricultural faculties may move there in the middle of the year, at least for laboratory work. This will involve substantial expenditures on a shuttle bus service. 37. The first batch of students graduated in 1986 and already there are plans to develop postgraduate programs. Of the initial 225 entrants, 67 graduated and another 79 are still in the system. The rest have left, voluntarily (51) or involuntarily (28). This wastage rate is said to be partly due to a lack of etudent support facilities. - 89 Annex B Page 7 of 8 38. Partl, because .t is a new and growing university (enrollments are increasing at 152 a year), the staffing parameters are not being met. The studentifaculty ratio is 8.5:1, the senior support staff outnumber the academic staff (180:131), and the junior staff equal 422 of student enroll- ment. Enrollments are 1,300 and the medium-term target is 3,500. So far, the development of two faculties -- health science and environmental design -- has been postponed. 39. The high cost of developing universities from scratch at standards comparable to those set in the past can be seen from the budget request for Owerri's 1987 building program. This includes land compensation N6.7 m, roads and bridges N5.7 m, electricity N3.5 m, water N1.5 m, and N13.5 m for unfinished academic buildings. New projects in line with the original building program are costed at 131 m The total capital allocation for Overri in 1986 was N2.9 m. State Universities Rivers State 40. Rivers State University evolved in 1980 from the Port Harcourt College of Science and Technology, founded in 1971. The initial idea was that Port Harcourt would be a multi-campus university, but the military government, following the 1983 coup, discouraged this concept. There has therefore been a need to upgrade the existing site. The university is science-and-technology oriented, although a law faculty has been added. Funding is mainly through the state government on a monthly basis. No fees are charged apart from a *development levy' of 1100 which, as a response to poor students, can be paid in three installments. 41. Expatriates have left the university over recent years, but it has been able to recruit young Nigerians, mainly from existing universities. Half the professors and senior lecturers are now Nigerian. 42. Most physical facilities are adequate, including the engineering and science buildings, which were funded in 1981/82 when resources were more readily available. 43. As in the case at Overri, enrollments in science subjects are not up to target despite low entrance requirements, whereas in management and law the demand is such that enrollments are relatively high. 44. One-third of the students have university accommodations. While the available data are very partial, pass rates appear to be low. Of the 1981/82 entrants to four-year programs, 36% had graduated by 1985. In the five-year programs, 632 had graduated by 1986. Others may still be in the system or have transferred to other universities. Bendel State 45. This university was established in 1980 by the state government. It provides an interesting example of how ambitious plans are forced to be modified in the light of expediency. -90- Annex Page 8 of 8 46. The university currently consists of a site of 10,000 acres on which the university was initially developed, a new campus 5-10 miles away with 7,500 acres, and a campus 150 km away where the faculty of education is located and which previously was a college of education. 47. The university, with ambitious plans, started from premises rented from a local secondary school with eight faculties, including agriculture and medicine, and a master plan to develop the university using N130 million and *free* prefabricated building materials donated to the university by the state government. After spending 122 million and an unspecified amount of these free materials, the university decided that the original site, not having completely flat land, was too expensive to build on, even though 65 staff hoases, three faculties and a library had already been constructed there. It was also decided that agriculture and medicine courses were too expensive to offer, and those two faculties were closed after only two years of operation. Surprisingly, it was decided to abandon the original site because its sloping nature added 20% to construction costs and to restart campus development on the new site. 48. Compared with buildings seen at several other universities, those at Bendel State are very simple -- &.ore of the type one might expect at a secondary school rather than at a university. However, apart from the science laboratories (which were not yet operational), most of the buildings are relatively functional. 49. Bendel State University sends its students in engineering and biochemistry to the Univorsity of Benin for practical workand pays that university for the work. This is the only case the study team is aware if where one university provides direct services to another. The university is also trying to establish links with overseas universities, and already there is a link with the University of Leeds in UK. 50. The university also offers pre-degree programs in science and education. Given the low proportion of JAMB applicants from Bendel State admitted to federal universities, it seems odd that these pre-degree courses are necessary. The study team does not feel that it is a good use of univer- sty resources to teach '0 Level" courses. 51. Finally, it was noted that about 252 of the teaching staff in the faculty of science are expatriates (Indian nationals). Without adequate science laboratories and without these staff, it is difficult to see how science courses can be taught effectively.