The Minister of Education, Olatunji Alausa, has urged the National Assembly to focus on improving funding for already existing educational institutions rather than setting up new ones.
Alausa made this known in a memo presented during a public hearing held by the House of Representatives Committee on Federal Polytechnics and Higher Technical Education. The hearing took place on Thursday in Abuja and featured discussions on three proposed education-related bills.
One of the key proposals debated was the bill to establish the Federal College of Entrepreneurship and Skills Acquisition in Hawul Local Government Area of Borno State.
The college is planned to offer full-time training in areas such as technology, applied sciences, management, arts, and humanities. However, the education minister pushed back against this bill.
He noted that the federal government has a standing policy on the fair spread of federal institutions across all states. According to Alausa, no state should have more than one federal polytechnic, and efforts have been made to ensure that each state — except Sokoto and the Federal Capital Territory — already has one.
“With limited resources,” he said, “our focus should be on making existing schools stronger so they can offer high-quality education, instead of dividing our efforts by creating new schools.”
Alausa also noted that the Ministry of Education has opened more ways for private individuals and state governments to set up their own schools. He suggested that those interested in building new institutions use these opportunities to support the country’s educational system.
Because of the current lack of sufficient funds, the minister recommended putting the plan for the new college in Borno on hold. He asked lawmakers to commit to helping existing schools improve, so Nigerian students can benefit from better learning environments.
On the other two bills, which aim to change parts of the Federal Polytechnics Act, the minister raised no major concerns. However, he did question the idea of adding representatives from the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) to the governing councils of polytechnics.
“While both organisations play significant roles,” Alausa said, “their core functions do not directly align with the responsibilities of a polytechnic’s governing council. NBTE serves as a regulatory body, while MAN advocates for the interests of manufacturers.”
Rep. Usman Balami, who sponsored the bill for the proposed college, defended it by pointing to the insecurity and high unemployment rate in Borno. He described the school as a tool to train young people with the practical skills they need to become self-reliant and economically productive.
“This institution will provide diverse training programmes tailored for today’s dynamic job market,” Balami said.
Rep. Fuad Laguda, Chairman of the Committee, noted that most people agree that skill-based education is key to fighting unemployment. He urged all involved to continue giving useful input and promised that the committee would carefully review every suggestion made.
“With the passage of these bills, Nigerians will have greater access to knowledge and skills in the arts, sciences, technology, humanities, and vocational and technical education,” Laguda added.
