Federal Government has approved 20 additional private polytechnics, 4 colleges of health sciences and technology as well as 32 Innovation Enterprise Institutions (IEIs) to offer diploma and certificate course.
Minister of Education Adamu Adamu who presented operational licenses to the beneficiary institutions said the state of technical and vocational education in Nigeria required very urgent and decisive action to reposition it for Nigeria’s technological take off and called on private operators to strive toward establishing a progress oriented and globally competitive institutions.
Represented by Permanent Secretary, Sunny Echono, the minister said to date government has approved 56 private polytechnics, 152 IEIs and 84 Vocational Enterprise Institutions (VEIs) spread across the country. “I will today present certificates to 20 private polytechnics, 4 colleges of health sciences and technology as well as 32 IEIs.
The minister said on no account must the newly established institutions run ‘study centres or satellite campuses and that qualifications obtained from such centres would not be recognized for further studies, employment and national youth service.
Some of the new institutions included, Hikima Polytechnic, Karu, Nasarawa State, Best Solution Polytechnic, Akure, Ondo State, Ajayi Polytechnic, Ikere and Aminu Dabo College of Health Technology, Kano. In his remarks, the Executive Secretary, National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Dr Masa’udu Adamu Kazaure said IEIs and VEIs were basically private intuitions that offered vocational, technical, technological or professional education and other skills-based training to equip youth and working adults with employment knowledge to meet increasing demand for technical manpower by various sectors of the economy.
He said the board had encouraged the establishment of private institutions and had under it purview “131 polytechnics, 33 colleges of agriculture, 50 colleges of health science and technology, 31 specialised institutions, 152 IEIs, 79 VEIs and 119 technical colleges.
