Favour Ishember, Abuja
The ₦25 billion raised through birthday donations mobilised by First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, combined with Tertiary Education Trust Fund resources, has given the long-dormant National Library of Nigeria Headquarters the financial lift it needed, the Minister of Education has said.
Speaking after the Federal Executive Council approved an increase to the existing contract for the completion and full furnishing of the complex, the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, CON, praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for stepping in to rescue a project abandoned for nearly two decades.
Dr. Alausa said the President’s directive provided both political will and actual funding to restart work on the imposing Abuja structure, calling it further proof that the education sector is moving onto a stronger footing.
Work on the National Library Headquarters began on April 29, 2006, with a two-year delivery timeline. Construction was halted in October 2008, and the building sat incomplete through successive governments.
“President Bola Tinubu, when he came in, mandated that we look for funds, real funds, that we use in completing this National Library. He directed that we source funds from Tertiary Education Trust Fund, and we’ve cobbled some funds together,” Dr. Alausa explained.
He also highlighted the First Lady’s role. Senator Oluremi Tinubu instructed that gifts received during her birthday celebration be redirected to the library project. That drive yielded about ₦25 billion.
“Combined with the money we’ve sourced from TETFund, the Council today approved the augmentation of the existing contract for the completion of the construction of the National Library of Nigeria Headquarters Building Complex in Abuja,” the Minister said.
In a press statement issued by Ikharo Attah, Special Adviser to the Minister on Media and Communications, Dr. Alausa expressed optimism that full construction activity will resume in the next few months, describing the FEC decision as a major breakthrough that ends years of uncertainty.
For him, the project is bigger than bricks and mortar. He described the library as a national knowledge hub designed to support learning, research, scholarship, public access to information, and the safeguarding of Nigeria’s intellectual heritage.
The Minister noted that the President’s action underscores a commitment to finishing critical education infrastructure left behind for years. He thanked President Tinubu for turning the library around, and also acknowledged Senator Oluremi Tinubu for channeling her birthday goodwill into the effort.
According to Dr. Alausa, the library’s revival fits into wider gains recorded in education under the current administration, and its completion will give Nigerians a modern institution that matches its mandate.
“Abandoned National Library for 18 years, President Bola Tinubu has now been able to mobilise funds, cobbled funds together, for work to go back, to start again at the National Library. We thank you, Mr. President,” he said.
He added that with renewed momentum, the headquarters will soon be completed and fully equipped, transforming the abandoned edifice into a working national centre of knowledge for current and future generations.
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