article · RUDN Journal of Public Administration
The Treasury Single Account policy introduced in 2015 centralised public funds to improve financial transparency and curb corruption across Nigerian federal universities. An examination of three institutions in the Niger Delta shows that whilst the policy significantly improved fiscal transparency and accountability, operational rigidity, procedural delays, and circumvention by institutional actors have limited its success. Corrupt practices have adapted rather than disappeared, shifting toward contract inflation, procurement fraud, and off-book cash transactions. Although the policy generated substantial national savings, broader corruption perception measures remain poor. Achieving genuine fiscal integrity in higher education requires combining the centralised account system with stronger monitoring mechanisms, upgraded digital infrastructure, targeted staff training, external anti-corruption oversight, and limited financial autonomy for universities.
Understanding how financial reforms function in practice helps public bodies design effective safeguards against corruption. Demonstrating that centralising public funds can redirect rather than eliminate fraud highlights the necessity of broader structural changes, robust digital tracking, and independent institutional oversight to ensure public resources allocated to universities are protected.
The abstract does not indicate an application pathway.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
Despite full enforcement of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) regime in 2015 to centralise public funds, enhance fiscal transparency, improve financial accountability, and curb corruption, financial irregularities persist across federal universities. Focusing on the Niger Delta region, the research highlights unique geopolitical constraints affecting policy outcomes. Grounded in Agency Theory, this study examined the effectiveness of the TSA policy in enhancing fiscal transparency, improving financial accountability, and curbing corruption in Nigerian federal universities, specifically UNIPORT, UNICAL, and UNIBEN. The study relied on mixed methods combining quantitative survey data (n = 158) analyzed via Chi-square tests with qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews and interpretation of secondary data from World Bank and Transparency International. Findings showed that while TSA has significantly enhanced fiscal transparency and accountability (p = 0.004), its implementation is marred by bureaucratic rigidity, operational delays, and circumvention strategies by institutional actors. Consequently, corrupt practices have not been fully abated due to reconfiguration into less traceable forms such as procurement fraud, contract inflation, and off-book cash payments. Despite savings exceeding ₦10 trillion nationally, Corruption Perception Index scores remain low, indicating systemic challenges beyond cash management. The study concluded that although the TSA regime has closed certain financial leakages, it is insufficient as a standalone measure. It recommends a holistic reform that integrates TSA with complementary anti-corruption strategies, including strengthened monitoring mechanisms, improved digital infrastructure, continuous staff training, and limited financial autonomy for universities. External oversight by agencies like EFCC and ICPC is also advocated to ensure comprehensive fiscal integrity within the higher education sector.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.22363/2312-8313-2026-13-2-254-274
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
