The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has inaugurated the national committee for the establishment of international standard autism centres across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
The committee was inaugurated on Thursday in Abuja by the executive secretary of TETFund, Arch. Sonny Echono, on behalf of the minister of education, Tunji Alausa.
Echono said the initiative is part of efforts to expand access to specialised services for persons with autism spectrum disorder and to build local expertise for early diagnosis, assessment, treatment, rehabilitation and research.
He said members of the committee were selected based on their expertise, experience and collective capacity to develop a sustainable national framework for the centres.
According to him, “the calibre and diversity of this committee reflects the importance we attach to this initiative. The process of identifying suitable institutions for the centres is ongoing.”
He said the centres will be hosted by selected university medical schools and will build on the gains of the recent Special High Impact Intervention for medical schools which is upgrading infrastructure and equipment for training in medicine, pharmacy, nursing, dentistry and related fields.
Echono said the initiative is in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu and is being considered for support under the 2027 TETFund special intervention subject to the committee’s findings, availability of resources and requisite approvals.
He listed the terms of reference of the committee to include developing a comprehensive framework for establishing the centres informed by needs assessment, identifying and recommending suitable host universities based on transparent and evidence-based criteria, recommending minimum standards for design, operation and staffing drawing on international best practices, developing realistic cost estimates and implementation schedules and proposing a monitoring and evaluation framework.
He charged the committee to ensure its proposals are supported by clear needs assessment, realistic cost estimates, measurable deliverables and a credible sustainability plan that distinguishes between capital equipment, staffing, operational expenditure and long-term maintenance.
Responding on behalf of members, the chairperson of the committee, Prof Ebunoluwa Aderonke Adejuyigbe, said the inauguration was not merely about establishing another committee but about a collective commitment to transform the lives of children and families living with autism spectrum disorder.
“We are not merely inaugurating another committee, we are marking the beginning of a collective commitment to transform the lives of countless children and families living with autism spectrum disorder in Nigeria,” she said.
For many families raising children with autism, she said, the journey is characterised by delayed diagnosis, denial, limited access to specialised services, financial difficulties and inadequate professional support.
Adejuyigbe, who is a Professor of Pediatrics and Former Vice Chancellor of the University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, said the centres must become models of excellence that combine clinical services with research, training and community engagement.
She added that the committee will be guided by five pillars including clinical services and early intervention, research and innovation, training and capacity building, community engagement and inclusion, and sustainability and quality assurance.
Adejuyigbe further pledged inclusive and transparent leadership to deliver evidence-based and sustainable recommendations appropriate to the Nigerian context.
