The National Universities Commission has budgeted N8m for research and development in 2018 , while N 85m is also earmarked for the purchase of motor vehicles at the commission ’s secretariat in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory .These figures were obtained by our correspondent from the 2018 budget proposal totalling N8. 6tn , which was presented by President Muhammadu Buhari about two weeks ago .

Our correspondent observed that the total expenditure for the NUC in 2018 is N4, 122, 549 ,530 , out of which the salary bill is N1, 434, 223 ,306 .

Under the maintenance services, the commission proposed to spend N3, 357 ,885 on the maintenance of office furniture, while the maintenance of office buildings and residential quarters would gulp N60, 075 ,664 .

It was gathered from the budget proposal breakdown that the commission plans to spend N9 ,739 ,246 on the maintenance of generators at the secretariat .

Under the capital expenditure section, the commission allocated N85 ,351 , 433 for the “purchase of motor vehicles .”

Our correspondent also observed that some of the projects to be continued by the commission in 2018 include the revamping of its websites and the redevelopment of the NUC liaison office in Lagos , as well as the Phase 1 of the Nigerian university system database portal .

Others are the automation of the physical library, university system quality assurance, the purchase of monitoring vehicles, replacement of central inverters and the resurfacing of the commission ’s car park .

Punchng