President Bola Tinubu on Monday in Ibadan urged university unions to partner the government to develop a funding blueprint for the country’s university system.

Mr Tinubu said this while speaking at the 76th Founder’s Day and Convocation ceremonies of the University of Ibadan.

He said such a blueprint should take cognisance of local peculiarities and modern realities, based on global best practices.

The president, represented by the Minister of State for Education, Suwaiba Ahmad, also urged Nigerian universities to reassess themselves in the light of national and global expectations.

“Let me seize this occasion to inform that the federal government, under my watch and as a listening government, has recently reversed the 18-year-minimum age for admission to higher institutions to status quo ante.

“At this juncture, let me persuade university unions, especially the Academic Staff Union of Universities, to recognise that all sectors in the country need more financing. And that government is working assiduously to perform its obligations with the resources available to it. A collapsed economy will not be in anybody’s interests,” he said.

Tinubu charged the university graduands with embracing curiosity, challenge, and change.

(NAN)