We’ll Establish Vocational Hubs, Entrepreneurship Centres In Tertiary Institutions

President Bola Tinubu said on Saturday that his administration will prioritise skills, technology, and vocational education to create more job opportunities in the country.

To this end, the President said it is establishing 24 skills and innovation hubs in polytechnics as well as entrepreneurship centres in the universities as the first phase.

He stated this during the 38th convocation ceremony for over 11,000 graduands at Bayero University, Kano, BUK in Kano State.

Represented by the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, Tinubu also hinted that the government is on the move to revive no fewer than 970 Tsangaya centres to integrate the learning and development of Almajiria in the country.

In his words, “We strongly believe that our survival can always be assured by the qualities of human capital development, which is why we make education one of the top priorities of this administration.

While supporting all aspects of education, this administration will lay more emphasis on skills, technology, and vocational education as co-drivers of the educational system that prepares graduates for employment or better fulfilled as employers of labour.

“For this purpose, in the first phase of the programme, the government is building 24 skill and vocational hubs in polytechnics as well as entrepreneurship centres in our universities. We are also reviving 970 Tsangaya centres for integrated learning and development of Almajiria in the country.

“We are also building 91 vocational schools in secondary schools across the country to ensure that all levels of education enjoy the impact of our policy.

“We are set to inaugurate Private Sector Innovation Enterprise Centre across the country to deliver on the skill acquisition program of the government.

“Our universities are centres of learning and need to upscale and adjust to the modern world by repositioning themselves as citadels of education that will bring about development.

“As a government, we are also determined in our effort to continue to support the upgrade of infrastructure, teaching materials, and research equipment in our universities, which the need assessment of Nigeria’s public universities is addressing. As part of the administration’s commitment to ensuring the universities are strengthened and reinvigorated for the fulfilment of their mandate, hence the lifting of the tertiary institutions from the IPPS platform of research, the increase of allocation to the educational sector in our preparation for the year 2024, and the operationalization of the student loan scheme in the year 2024, among others.

“The Federal Executive Council recently approved the guidelines for good governance and adherence to financial regulations, hence IPPS. Universities are strongly advised to heed those guidelines, as serious consequences will apply to any breach.

“Universities are therefore expected to define their roles and carve out a niche for themselves by designing programmes that will assist the government in poverty reduction, creating employment opportunities, health promotion, the application of new technologies in the advancement of knowledge and prosperity, protecting the environment, promoting sustainable development, as well as sustaining democracy and good governance. Without missing out on the quest towards the attainment of global sustainable development goals.

“The universities are strongly advised or encouraged to run industries to develop their research output into products for our community,” the president, however, stated.

On his part, the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, pledged legislative support for the education policies of the federal government.