By Ngozi Nwankwo
Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, and the Voice of Nigeria, VON, have formed a partnership to expand global visibility of Nigeria’s education sector through strategic media collaboration.
Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arc. Sonny Echono, made this known when he received a delegation from VON led by its Director-General, Jibrin Baba Ndace, at the Fund’s headquarters in Abuja.
Echono said TETFund intends to leverage VON’s extensive broadcast reach to better showcase the Fund’s projects and contributions to tertiary education across Nigeria and beyond.
He noted that public understanding and appreciation of TETFund’s work have grown due to visible interventions across institutions nationwide, adding that broader media engagement would further strengthen transparency and public awareness.
According to him, TETFund is embarking on extensive project commissioning nationwide and requires effective media coverage to ensure Nigerians, especially those in rural communities who rely heavily on radio, are adequately informed.
He emphasised the importance of content co-creation and sustained collaboration, directing the Fund’s Public Affairs Department to work closely with VON to develop a functional framework for continuous engagement.
Echono also commended VON’s multilingual broadcasting capacity, describing it as a strategic advantage in reaching diverse audiences within and outside Nigeria.
Earlier, VON Director-General, Ndace, said TETFund interventions remain critical to the survival and development of tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
Ndace commended Echono’s leadership and reforms within the Fund, pledging VON’s support in amplifying TETFund’s activities globally.
The DG explained that VON, Nigeria’s external broadcast service, operates in eight languages: English, Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Fulfulde, French, Arabic, and Swahili, and is expanding collaborations to further project Nigeria’s image worldwide.
He added that the organization is repositioning its operations by strengthening zonal offices across the country and diversifying content to include culture, tourism, and developmental storytelling alongside government policies.
Ndace stressed the need for Nigeria to take ownership of its narrative, noting that positive national developments are often overshadowed by negative portrayals in foreign media.
He proposed a structured collaboration that would enable VON’s nationwide reporters to cover TETFund activities, translate content into multiple languages, and support capacity building for communication teams within tertiary institutions.
The VON boss also disclosed ongoing efforts to reactivate the organization’s high-capacity rotating antenna transmitter, which would enable Nigeria to broadcast clearly across Africa, Europe, and other parts of the world.