THE IMPACT OF EDUCATION TAX FUND IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN NIGERIA

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Background of the Study

Funding of Education cannot be discussed without the knowledge of Education itself. Therefore Education has been defined by various scholars:

According to Uche (1984:86), “Education is the process of training and developing the mental, potential, physical knowledge, skills and character of individuals by formal and informal schooling”.

In my own view, Education can be defined as a tool, which enables an individual to live efficiently and effectively for him and the society at large. The Nigerian Education system comprises of 6-3-3-4 that is the six years in primary school and three years for the junior level of the secondary school, three years in the senior secondary and fours years in the tertiary institution (Depending on the course of study).

The tertiary institution plays a significant role in the domain of manpower development. According to the National policy on Education (1981:5-38), tertiary institutions “are those institutions that cover the post secondary section of our National Education system, which is given in Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of education, the advanced teacher training college, correspondent colleges and institutions as my be allied to them”.

Over the yeas, the tertiary institution has suffered due to poor funding, according to Ozurumba (1998:106) “The best Education could be easily aborted if not supported by adequate funds”. Inadequate funding has been the contaminating problem in Nigeria.

To this end, testing institutions need finance to carry out research in Medicine, Engineering, Education etc. training and retraining of lecturers, acquiring of facilities and other amenities that can improve student potentials to the overall achievements of the aims and objectives of higher education in Nigeria.

In Nigeria Education history, between 1932 and 1962, there were only five higher institutions viz:university of Nigeria Nsukka, University of Ibadan, Ahmadu Bello University, Yaba Higher College and University of Lagos. Funding of these institutions was not problem because our country's economy was one of the strongest amongst the third world countries.

Compared to the country's population of 55.65 million in 1963, the number of undergraduates were about 8,800, that is to say the country had very few undergraduates. Hence, as a result of this there were job opportunities for graduates, there came to be increased demand for higher education.

Uche (1984:134) said that “Over sixty tertiary institutions were established nationwide between 1970 and 1982. The funding of this higher institutions rested squarely on the government. Based on this, it could be observed that the funding of these institutions was principally shouldered by the government.

In support of this, Amadi (1998:47) pointed out that, “during the oil boom the period of large profit in the petroleum oil section, Nigeria was economically viable and there was boom in the financing of Education. Many Nigerians received scholarships and bursary awards to enable them to be trained in various fields of education. New programmes and specialized areas were introduced and facilities for teaching and learning provided.

The period of oil boom of 1980 was characterized by rapid disbursement of fund to institutions of higher learning as and when due, provision of money for research, oversea scholarship, training and retraining of lecturers, infrastructure, apparatus for our laboratories etc.

However, like a flash in the pan, the era of oil boom set in. uche (1984:135) said “By April 1982, Nigeria suffered from oil glut”. From 1982 to 1989 there was a dramatic nose-diving of the price of our major source of foreign exchange earner (oil). The colossal burden of financing the tertiary institutions became apparently uneasy and extremely unbearable.

To alleviate this gigantic burden, president Ibraham Babangida promulgated the Education Tax Decree No. 7 on 1st January 1993. According to Odicha (1993:20) “this decree finally impose education tax of two percent (2%) on all the profits declared by companies registered in Nigeria and established on Education Fund into which the tax collected shall be paid.

It is in the light of this, that this study has been designed to investigate the impact of education tax fund on tertiary institutions, particularly Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri.(A.I.F.E).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Ten years after the introduction of Education Tax

Decree and its subsequent implementation, has sceneries in our tertiary institutions that prompted it really changed?

We have observed that prior to the enactment of Education Tax Decree, our tertiary institutions were afflicted with such difficulties as decayed facilities, congested classrooms and hostels, obsolete textbooks in our libraries etc. do these problems still persist in Alvan Ikoku Federal college of Education? If they still exist, there are questions to be answered on how education tax fund has impacted on Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education.

Could it be that these problems are still there because of some abnormalities in the disbursement of funds? Or could it be that the authority charged with the management of the fund are callous and corrupt?

Assuming that the above questions points to the root of the matter, how can they really be remedied? Hence the need to investigate the impact of Education Tax Fund in tertiary institutions in necessary.

1.3 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to examine the Impact of Education Tax Fund in Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

1. To ascertain the problems impending the disbursement of funds.
2. To identify the benefits of Education Tax Fund in Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri.
3. To suggest solutions to these problems in order to enhance effective Education in Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri.

1.4 Research Questions

The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:

1. What are the problems facing the disbursement of fund in Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Edcuation?
2. How beneficial has education tax fund been to Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education?
3. What are the possible solutions to these problems encountered in proper implementation of education tax fund?

1.5 Significance of Study

This study will be of great significance to the following:

1. Students: In regard to students, a conducive learning environment will aid effective assimilation and learning.
2. Lecturers: There will be provision of conducive offices, instructional materials and textbooks for effective teaching and learning process.
3. The School: It will help the school to have good recommendation from outside by different institution, researchers, resources personnel etc.
4. Government: It will also help to produce good, competent, qualified graduates to fit into different areas where they are needed in government parastatals and the society at large. The findings will enable the society to know the various problems militating against disbursement of the Education Tax Fund since its inception.

1.6 Scope of the Study

The scope of this research is focused on the impact of Education Tax Fund in Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri, Imo State.

1.7 Limitation of the Study

During the course of this study, there were some problems encountered which stood as limitations to the research work. Some of the limitations include:

1. Time Constraint:

   The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.

2. Financial Constraint:

   Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

3. Initial Cooperation Delay from Respondents:

   A particular limitation of this work came as a result of the respondent refusal to offer their cooperation at the initial time they were contacted. This contributed in making the success of this research study difficult.

1.8 Definition of Terms

Ample:

According to Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, Ample can be define as a situation where something is in large quantity, plenty or enough, according to as it was used in this chapter it means enough work opportunity or plenty job vacancies.

Abort:

According to Chambers dictionary can be defined as the process of bringing something to an end suddenly or unexpectedly.

Colossal:

Can be defined as a very large something as it is used in this work it means a very large or big problem or burden.

Promulgate:

This can be defined as the processing of making something widely known.

Obsolete:

This can be defined as anything that is outdated or something that is no longer in use.

Disbursement:

This can be defined as the process of releasing money or distributing money to different departments of an organization.

Oil Boom:

The phrase oil boom can be defined as the period when the exportation of petroleum products were at its pick or at its highest level.

Congested:

This can be defined as the stated at which a place is said to be very crowded or a situation were there is a very large population in a very small place.