The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) on Tuesday reaffirmed its resolve to continue clamping down on unaccredited institutions posing as polytechnics, stressing that such entities undermine government efforts to provide quality education nationwide.
Despite existing challenges, the board noted that polytechnic education in Nigeria is still on course, playing a key role in equipping students with the skills needed to drive national development and technological growth.
In recent years, the country has witnessed an increase in fake or “mushroom” polytechnics — schools operating without proper accreditation but presenting themselves as legitimate institutions.
Such establishments, often lacking adequate facilities, qualified lecturers, and standard curricula, not only threaten students’ academic prospects but also work against the broader objectives of Nigeria’s education system.
The Director of Polytechnic and Allied Programmes, NBTE, Dr Fatimah Kabir Umar, disclosed this while speaking to our correspondent during the NBTE’s accreditation visit to Harvarde College of Science, Business and Management Studies, Obada, Abeokuta.
Umar explained that, “We have been fighting against mushroom entities calling themselves what they are not.. We won’t stop to fight such an establishment in the interest of safeguarding what is best for the nation.
“Yes, we know that there is no way we won’t have a few bad eggs around, but we shall continue to fight them and ensure that they do not stand in the way of the government’s commitment to the delivery of qualitative education at all levels.”
The NBTE Director disclosed that the polytechnic education in the country is on the right path, adding that the sector has consistently been concerned with helping to upscale skills acquisition for the advancement of the country’s development.
She said, “Yes, knowledge is good, but we can’t put all our eggs in one basket, and so in terms of execution of this knowledge, the polytechnic education has been leading, and that is why the polytechnic education has remained relevant to building a more prosperous nation”.
Umar explained that the NBTE was at the college for accreditation of the school programmes in two clusters of science and management courses, such as Business Administration, Computer Science, that has been unbundled, like Software Development, Cyber security, among others.
“From what I observed so far in terms of facilities, because I have also been privileged to be here in the past, the institution, in terms of facilities and infrastructure, is not having any challenge,” Umar noted.
Umar, however, urged the lecturers to do a lot more in terms of personal development, urging them to register with appropriate professional bodies, attend conferences, publish journals, and stay updated to be able to dish out the very best for the students.
The Director lauded the management of the school for doing their bit to complement the federal government’s efforts to provide qualitative tertiary education for Nigerians, urging the institution to continue to invest in excellence and uphold the highest standards as outlined by the NBTE.
Speaking at the event, the founder and Provost of the college, Dr Oluwatosin Adebayo, stated that the NBTE is visiting the school for resource inspection and accreditation of about eight courses, like Film and Multimedia Production, Journalism and Media Studies, Accountancy, Business Administration, Law, Networking and Cloud Computing, Software and Web Development, and institutional accreditation.
“This is part of the way the NBTE operates; every two years, they visit the schools for accreditation. It is a periodic thing to ensure quality assurance, and we are happy to receive the entire team, being confident that we have also been doing what is expected at our end, not to offend the rules.
“The visit also involves the accreditation of HND programmes of courses like Accountancy, Business Administration, Computer Science, that has now been unbundled so that our students can now begin to go for National Youth Service,” Adebayo said.
The provost reiterated the commitment of the management of the institution to continuous investment that will always place the school on a strong pedestal in the country.