The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr Emomotimi Agama, has urged Nigerian universities to explore capital market funding to reduce their dependence on government allocations and generate sustainable revenue.
Agama made the call while delivering a lecture at the University of Ibadan Alumni Association Annual Public Service Lecture in Ibadan.The lecture was themed, “First and Best But Whose Capital Built It? Rethinking How Nigeria Funds Its Own Future.”
The SEC boss said universities could mobilise long-term investments through the capital market to finance infrastructure, research, student accommodation and other development projects.
Agama, however, lamented that despite the university’s contributions to national development and its production of prominent personalities, including a Nobel laureate, heads of state and central bank governors, it had yet to approach the capital market to raise long-term funds.
On student accommodation, Agama said universities could develop financing arrangements that would enable them to generate revenue from housing facilities rather than allowing private landlords to benefit exclusively from students’ accommodation expenses.
He added that university innovation funds could allow institutions to acquire equity stakes in businesses developed from research conducted in their laboratories while retaining ownership of their intellectual property.
The SEC boss, however, stressed that universities seeking capital market funding must demonstrate financial discipline and transparency.
He proposed the establishment of an Alumni Capital Fund with a low minimum investment threshold to encourage participation by young graduates and Nigerians in the diaspora.
In his remarks, the Acting President of the University of Ibadan Alumni Association, Professor Terrumun Gajir, described the lecture’s theme as timely, noting that Nigeria needed effective strategies to mobilise capital for sustainable economic growth.
Gajir called for deeper domestic investment and reduced dependence on external capital, stressing the need to mobilise pension funds, household savings and private investments for productive national development.He said a functional capital market could provide returns for investors while supporting industrial growth, infrastructure development and job creation.According to him, universities must move away from a culture of financial dependence towards capital formation, investment, ownership and shared prosperity.Earlier, the Chairman of the occasion, Bayo Oyero, urged the University of Ibadan to begin investing directly in financial markets beyond the activities of its alumni association.Oyero, an alumnus of the institution, called for the establishment of an independent endowment fund, separate from the existing Alumni Endowment Fund, to invest in properties and other assets capable of generating sustainable returns.
