The Federal Government has imposed a seven-year ban on the establishment of new federal universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. FG recently cited the spread of under-utilised institutions, overstretched resources, and a drop in academic quality as reasons.
The decision was approved at Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, following a presentation by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa.
Speaking to State House correspondents after the meeting, Alausa disclosed that access is no longer a problem in Nigeria’s tertiary education system; therefore, focus must shift to other challenges.
According to him, inefficient duplication, weak infrastructure, inadequate staffing, and dwindling enrolment in many existing institutions are the major issues that must be addressed asap.
“Several federal universities operate far below capacity, with some having fewer than 2,000 students. In one northern university, there are 1,200 staff serving fewer than 800 students. This is a waste of government resources,” he said.
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The minister stated that 199 universities received fewer than 100 applications via the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board last year, with 34 recording zero applications.
Out of the 295 polytechnics all across Nigeria, Tunji noted that many had fewer than 99 applicants, while 219 colleges of education also posted poor enrolment figures, including 64 with no applications at all.
He concluded by saying that allowing the poorly subscribed institutions to keep gaining ground will eventually lead to the production of ill-prepared graduates.
“If we want to improve quality and not be a laughing stock globally, the pragmatic step is to pause the establishment of new federal institutions.
When we assumed office, there were 551 applications for private universities. Many had been stuck due to inefficiencies at the NUC. We deactivated over 350 dormant applications and set new, stricter guidelines. Of the 79 active cases, nine met the criteria and were approved,” he added.
