Statement of the Problem. The study is directed toward evolving an appropriate model for funding higher education in Nigeria adequately, equitably, rationally and realistically.
Purpose of the Study. The study is undertaken as a result of the researcher's concern for the cost implications of the increasing demand for student placements in institutions of higher education and the phenomenal development and uncoordinated growth of these institutions in Nigeria since it became a sovereign nation.
The Scope of the Study. Higher education in the context of the study includes all formal schooling at the tertiary level in Nigeria, namely: college/university preparatory institutions, advanced teachers' colleges/colleges of education, and colleges of technology/polytechnics and universities.
Methodology. The study was a descriptive-prescriptive one. The procedures involved the use of existing documents and literature, and personal interviews with selected bureaucrats, college/university administrators, faculty and legislators/politicians in the State of Ohio, U.S.A. and in Nigeria. In pursuance of the study, consideration was given to the associated problems of budgeting and the planning of resource allocation processes adopted in the country. Moreover, a review of the Australian funding system and the resource allocation models developed under the auspices of the Organization for Economic Cooperative Development (OECD) was done for purposes of comparability and analysis.
Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations. The researcher finds a high degree of commitment in Nigeria for the development of higher education. The principles underlying the financial allocation to higher education and the procedures adopted for developing it, and making effective resource allocation to it, however, need to be revamped to make for an efficient funding system in the country. Consequently, the researcher evolves a new model for funding higher education in Nigeria which consists of the following: a formula; a programmatic allocation procedure: a procedure for building up a generalized budget that would not be inhibitive of institutional autonomy; an internal institutional resource allocation system; a strategy for integrating internal institutional planning with the Nigerian national development plans; and a strategy for keeping the funding model current.
Finally, the researcher recommends a proposal for testing and implementing the new model that he has evolved.
