The Federal Government has assembled about N25bn from gifts received by First Lady Oluremi Tinubu during her birthday celebration, alongside funding from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, to revive the long-abandoned National Library of Nigeria headquarters in Abuja.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Sunday after the Federal Executive Council approved an augmentation of the existing contract for the completion and comprehensive furnishing of the National Library headquarters complex.
The project, which began on April 29, 2006, was originally scheduled for completion within two years. However, construction was halted in October 2008, leaving the complex abandoned for nearly 18 years.
According to Alausa, President Bola Tinubu directed the Ministry of Education to identify sustainable sources of funding, including TETFund, to ensure the completion of the project.
The minister said the government had succeeded in pooling resources from different sources to restart work on the complex.
“President Bola Tinubu, when he came in, mandated that we look for funds, real funds, that we use in completing this National Library,” Alausa said.
He explained that the First Lady also made a significant contribution to the project by directing that gifts received during her birthday celebration be channelled towards the completion of the National Library.
Alausa said the initiative generated approximately N25bn, which was added to funds sourced through TETFund and other government efforts.
He added that the combined funding enabled the Federal Executive Council to approve the augmentation of the existing contract for the completion and furnishing of the National Library headquarters.
The minister expressed optimism that construction would resume fully in the coming months, describing the development as an important milestone for Nigeria’s education sector.
He said the project was not merely about completing an abandoned building but about establishing a modern national centre for learning, research, scholarship, information access and the preservation of Nigeria’s intellectual heritage.
According to him, the completed facility would enhance the National Library’s ability to carry out its statutory responsibilities and provide Nigerians with improved access to knowledge and research resources.
Alausa commended President Tinubu for providing the political support and political will needed to revive the project after years of abandonment.
The National Library of Nigeria is the country’s apex library and is responsible for collecting, preserving and providing access to Nigeria’s published intellectual heritage.
The Abuja headquarters was conceived as a major national knowledge centre. However, prolonged delays and funding challenges left the facility incomplete under successive administrations.
With the latest approval by the Federal Executive Council, the government expects the project to move towards completion and comprehensive furnishing after nearly two decades of stalled construction.
