The Federal Government ordered polytechnics, monotechnics and other allied institutions to stop granting degrees.
The National Council for Technical Education transmitted the government’s decision to the heads of the affected institutions through circular TEB/PRO/E/12/Vol.11/132 dated December 1, 2022.
Our correspondent obtained a copy of the document signed by the Board Director, Department of Polytechnic Programs, Ogoh Ngbede on Tuesday.
Ngbede, in the circular, expressed the dismay of the Federal Ministry of Education at the increasing number of tertiary institutions in the country offering programs for which they were not originally designed.
However, he said the government has given the affected institutions four years to graduate the last batch of students already admitted to such programs.
The circular read in part: “Polytechnics and other technical institutions in the country must stop admitting students to degree programs immediately.
“Similarly, polytechnics and allied institutions that award the Nigerian Certificate of Education should be limited to technical courses.
“However, college students already admitted to these programs should be allowed to round out the programs they are already admitted to.
“Institutions have been given a four-year period (until 2026) to graduate their last batch of students for such programs.”
PUNCH reports that the Polytechnic Academic Staff Union has over time petitioned the government to allow polytechnics to award degrees.
The union’s national president, Anderson Ezeibe, pointed out that the granting of degrees by polytechnics would end the current dichotomy.
He said: “HND is no longer as attractive as it used to be to young Nigerians due to the dichotomy of a lifetime.
“Lawmakers have made it a rule that once a person has an HND, they can’t reach the top of their career, so why do they continue to force it on people, why don’t they phase it out and replace it with Bachelor’s? of technology?”
According to him, Nigeria’s polytechnic system has what it takes in terms of infrastructure and human capital to award bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in the area of technology.
When contacted Tuesday for his reaction to the development,
Ezeibe promised to contact our correspondent later in the evening.
It has not yet done so at the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, Director of Programs, Education Reform Nigeria, Ayodamola Oluwatoyin, in an interview with our correspondent on Tuesday, backed the government’s decision.
She said: “It is a very good initiative. Universities and polytechnics exist for different reasons. While universities are widely believed to focus on theories, polytechnics focus on practices. So why should one want to take over the duty of another?
“However, it is worth noting that the government has committed to removing the dichotomy between degrees and Higher National Diplomas. We need to understand that the two awards serve different purposes, therefore one should not be seen as inferior to the other.”
