Dr. Muhammad Yakubu, a former executive secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), has urged the Federal Government to allow polytechnics to provide bachelor of technology degrees in order to relieve the "JAMB backlog and alleviate admission pressures on universities."
According to Yakubu, if the policy were to be put into place, it would also ensure that a sizable amount of technical equipment in workshops, labs, and other facilities at public polytechnics that went unused because of a small student body would be fully utilised.
When delivering the Second Raheem Adisa Oloyo Annual Lecture at the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro, Ogun State, the former rector of Kaduna Polytechnic made this statement.
The former rector of the university, Dr. Raheem Adisa Oloyo, was honoured at the lecture.
On his lecture entitled, “Re-engineering Polytechnic Education in Nigeria to Achieve a Paradigm Shift in Nigeria’s Development Agenda”, Yakubu argued that if polytechnics were empowered to award their degrees, it would increase the production of much-needed middle and higher level manpower in the country.
He added that such policy would also provide opportunities for youths to pursue careers in technical fields and undertake higher studies in their chosen fields, without losing the essence of the callings.
He noted that Nigeria could not attain growth with the poor enrollment of students into polytechnics and technical colleges.
According to him, without a sound Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in place, the “economic future of Nigeria is doomed.”
Yakubu also called on the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the NBTE to implement the Chief Gray Longe Commission, set up in 1990, which recommended that, “for every student enrolled in the universities, there should be 10 in the polytechnics and colleges of education”.
On the poor enrolment figure into polytechnics, he recalled that in 2018/2019 session, a total of 342, 986 students were admitted into polytechnics and other technical colleges, while 1.8 million students were admitted into universities.
He submitted that increased enrolment of students in polytechnics and technical colleges would address the nation’s deficit of skilled workers.
“The enrolment figure in polytechnics is dismal, especially when we compare it with the infrastructure, the amount of money we spend on polytechnics and manpower available.
“In fact, enrolment in technical colleges and science and technical colleges accounts for less than 2.6 percent of senior secondary enrollment.
“Given the importance of TVET for the integration of youths into the labour market as well as for the growth prospects of key value chains, there is a clear need to review the structure of the country’s TVET provision and come up with a reform strategy,” he said.
In his remarks, the Rector, Dr. Olusegun Aluko expressed concern that “polytechnic education is under siege,” saying as part of ways to solving the challenges of the polytechnics, that subsector of tertiary education must always occupy the front-burner of national discourse.