The Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Mr Sonny Echono, has reaffirmed the Fund’s commitment to strengthening collaboration with the Nigerian Army to promote education, security and technological development in Nigeria.

Echono stated this during a courtesy visit to the Army Headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said the partnership was necessary to ensure a safer environment for educational institutions and promote national development.

According to him, the visit was also aimed at appreciating the military’s strategic role in safeguarding the country and supporting the education sector.

Echono noted that beyond security operations, the military had become an important contributor to educational advancement and technological innovation in Nigeria.

The TETFund boss stressed the importance of emerging technologies and expressed the agency’s readiness to explore innovations being driven by the Armed Forces.

“We also want to underscore the role the military is playing in our education sector. We look forward to deepening our collaboration with the military.

“As technology advances, a lot of technological innovations are being carried out by the military and we are looking forward to exploring areas such as robotics, Artificial Intelligence and other advancements being pioneered by the military,” he said.

Echono assured TETFund’s continued support in areas aligned with national development priorities.

“We want to reiterate our assurance that we will continue to support the Armed Forces in every way possible,” he said.

Responding, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, appreciated the TETFund boss for the visit and commended the agency for supporting the Nigerian Army School of Engineering, Makurdi, and the Nigerian Army University, Biu.

Oluyede welcomed the opportunity to deepen collaboration between both institutions.

The army chief disclosed that the Nigerian Army was intensifying efforts in modern warfare capabilities, especially in drone technology and armament development, but noted that manpower shortages remained a challenge.

“I am most grateful for this opportunity to strengthen collaboration with TETFund.

“We are pushing more in the area of drone warfare and armament development.

“We are also looking at sponsoring children to become pioneers in these areas, but the requisite manpower is lacking. So, we are seeking your help in that area,” he said.

He said TETFund’s support in intellectual and human capital development would help build indigenous capacity in military technology and defence production.

Oluyede noted that Nigeria’s continued dependence on imported military hardware underscored the need for local capacity development.

“The more we continue importing arms, the more difficult it will remain for us until we begin producing our own,” he said.

He commended TETFund for its contributions to transforming Nigeria’s education sector and stressed the need for sustained investment in human capital development.