…as the university holds its Bursary Day 4.0
As universities face mounting pressure to optimise resources, deepen accountability and remain financially sustainable, the University of Lagos (UNILAG) is betting on digital transformation to reshape its operations, strengthen financial management and drive institutional efficiency.
Folasade Ogunsola, vice-chancellor of the university, speaking during the institution’s Bursary Day 4.0, with the theme: “Towards a Smart Bursary: Advancing Efficiency, Accountability and Service Excellence,” reinforced her administration’s commitment to intensify efforts to modernise the university’s financial management system through artificial intelligence, automation and data-driven decision-making,
Besides, she disclosed how the institution reversed its negative financial position following the COVID-19 pandemic and prolonged industrial disruptions.
“The UNILAG’s Bursary Department played a critical role in restoring financial stability, ensuring timely payments to contractors and supporting the execution of strategic projects despite mounting operational pressures,” she said.
In addition, the vice-chancellor said, “Financial managers must move beyond traditional bookkeeping to become strategic partners in institutional development.”
Ogunsola recalled that the university faced significant financial difficulties following the pandemic and industrial actions that disrupted academic activities and weakened internally generated revenue.
“Within a record time we reversed from negative balance to positive balance,” she said, commending the Bursary Department for helping the university regain financial stability.
She explained that the university continued to incur operational expenses, including electricity bills, during periods when students were absent from campus, and revenue-generating activities were disrupted.
The vice-chancellor also highlighted the department’s record in meeting contractors’ financial obligations, noting that timely payments were essential to maintaining confidence among service providers and supporting infrastructure development.
“It is irrelevant to the vision of the vice-chancellor; if you do not have resources or have inadequate resources, you will not achieve that vision,” she said.
Bola Adigun, partner at Deloitte and its West Africa Strategy and Business Design Leader, urged university bursaries to embrace digital transformation to improve operational efficiency and financial sustainability.
Adigun, who delivered the lecture at the event, said the future of financial management lies in moving from fragmented information systems to integrated intelligence capable of supporting strategic decisions.
“I don’t think that AI takes away jobs,” she said, explaining that technology could help employees work faster, smarter and more efficiently.
She identified process optimisation, intelligent reporting, digital transactions and paperless operations as essential components of a smart bursary.
According to her, automating repetitive administrative processes would reduce human errors, accelerate transactions and allow financial officers to concentrate on more strategic responsibilities.
She also advocated real-time financial dashboards, predictive analytics and self-service portals to improve decision-making and reduce waiting times for students, staff and contractors.
Adigun stressed that accountability must remain central to digital transformation, particularly through data integrity, transparency, compliance, auditability and risk monitoring.
“A clear digital trail protects the honest officer,” she said.
Rahamon Bello, former vice-chancellor at UNILAG and the chairman of the occasion, warned that adopting artificial intelligence without reliable data could undermine institutional decision-making.
“If you have data that is not verifiable and you now put AI to analyse it, what will it give you? Garbage,” Bello said.
He urged universities to strengthen cybersecurity systems, protect sensitive financial information and ensure that technology supports rather than compromises accountability.
Bello also challenged bursary departments to function more like corporate finance offices, advising university management on revenue generation, financial risks and long-term sustainability.
The 2026 UNILAG’s Bursary Day, brought together university administrators, financial professionals and industry experts to examine how technology could strengthen accountability and service delivery in higher education, amid growing concerns over funding constraints in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
Despite an overall expansion in public spending, where the proposed federal education budget grew to N3.59 trillion, the structural sector share of the total federal budget declined from 7.82 percent down to 6.15 percent.
Consequently, the education funding gap widened sharply to N5.18 trillion, heavily crowding out capital development project execution within higher institutions.
Concurrently, institutions are increasingly leaning on institutional funding agencies; under the federal infrastructure intervention frameworks, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) budget allocation scaled up significantly to N1.6 trillion, attempting to bridge the operational shortfalls facing public campuses.
Meanwhile, Ogunsola urged employees to embrace technological change while maintaining professional integrity.
She said digitisation would reduce routine administrative responsibilities and create opportunities for financial officers to undertake more analytical and strategic work.
The vice-chancellor commended the bursary staff for their commitment to financial discipline, describing their contributions as critical to institutional stability.
Oluwafunmilola Adekunle, UNILAG’s bursar and host of the event, led the fourth edition of the annual programme, which seeks to promote financial discipline, teamwork, accountability and strategic leadership among university finance personnel.
The event reinforced the growing importance of financial innovation in Nigerian universities, where effective resource management is increasingly critical to sustaining academic operations, infrastructure investment and institutional development.
Charles Ogwo is a proactive journalist, driving education, and business innovations for over 10 years. He leads initiatives leveraging tech to enhance storytelling and build topnotch performing team. Charles is passionate about harnessing technology to inform, engage and empower communities.
