The Federal Government has approved N118.3 billion to complete the National Library of Nigeria’s headquarters in Abuja, with an additional N37 billion earmarked for furnishing the long-delayed facility

**Tinubu orders use of legally cleared funds for education, national development

The Federal Government has approved N118.309 billion for the completion of construction works on the National Library of Nigeria Headquarters Building Complex in Abuja, alongside about N37 billion for its furnishing.

The approvals bring the total funding requirement for the completion and furnishing of the long-abandoned project to about N155 billion.

The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents on the outcome of Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja.

He said the approval followed President Bola Tinubu‘s directive to ensure that legally cleared and unencumbered funds belonging to Nigerians were deployed to priority national development projects, particularly education.

According to him, the President had mandated the Attorney-General of the Federation to work with the Minister of Finance and the Ministry of Education to examine the legal framework surrounding the proposed utilisation of funds from the Unclaimed Capital Market/Unclaimed Dividend Trust Fund and the Dormant Account Trust Fund.

Alausa stressed that no funds subject to legal disputes would be transferred or utilised.

“Every single fund that is still subject to a legal challenge will not be part of the money that will be transferred to the fund,” he said.

The minister explained that only funds that had been legally cleared and were unencumbered would be considered, adding that such funds must legitimately belong to Nigeria and Nigerians.

He said the decision was driven by the need to invest in education and secure the future of Nigerian children.

“We need to educate our children. We need to move this fund to use it, and using this fund to educate our children, you can never get a better use for this fund than to educate our children,” Alausa said.

The minister said the National Library project, which commenced in April 2006 and was originally scheduled for completion within two years, had remained stalled for years after work stopped in October 2008.

He recalled that President Tinubu had, on assuming office, directed the Ministry of Education to explore funding options for completing the national edifice.

Alausa also acknowledged the contribution of First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, who, he said, raised about N25 billion towards the project after directing that gifts received during her birthday celebration be channelled to the completion of the National Library.

He said the latest FEC approval, combined with funds mobilised from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) and other sources, would enable work to resume on the project.

The minister expressed optimism that construction would recommence within the next few months.

On reports that some tertiary institutions were withholding funds belonging to students, Alausa said the Federal Government had introduced new frameworks and timelines to prevent such practices.

He said institutions were now required to return funds to students within one week of receiving confirmation that government had made the relevant payments.

The minister acknowledged that such problems had occurred in the past but maintained that the government had taken steps to address them.

Responding to a specific case involving Abia State University, where a reported payment-related mix-up had allegedly persisted for more than six months, Alausa requested details of the case and promised to investigate it.

He, however, maintained that the situation was no longer a systemic problem, insisting that the government had put mechanisms in place to prevent a recurrence.

The minister said the broader funding initiatives approved by FEC were part of the Tinubu administration’s effort to strengthen the education sector, improve access to tertiary education and ensure that available national resources were channelled into investments capable of transforming the lives of Nigerian children.