● NBTE undertakes resource verification for 21 new courses at IMAP
Report by Ali Abare
Worried by the dearth of trained technicians in Nasarawa State, Governor Abdullahi Sule has said that his administration is in a rush to fill the void through an aggressive pursuit of technical and vocational education.
Governor Sule made this known when he hosted at the Government House an accreditation and visitation team from the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) on resource verification at the Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic Lafia, on Thursday.
The NBTE team is in Lafia to undertake resource verification for 21 new courses, including 16 engineering related courses at IMAP, as well as reaccreditation for 12 other courses already being run by the institution.
According to the Governor, his concerns stemmed from his experience from the organized private sector where he discovered that citizens of Nasarawa State are not that visible when it comes to technical and vocational education, especially in companies where he worked.
“For us in Nasarawa State, vocational and technical education is very important. Therefore, the 31 programmes that you are going to resource verify, in addition to the 18 that you are going for reaccreditation, won’t be too much for us.
“The reason being we were left behind for too long in Nasarawa State. It is better for us to take advantage of the situation that we have now and do as quickly as possible, as many programmes as possible, so that it would just be reaccreditation rather than an entirely fresh accreditation process.
“That is the reason why we are doing what we are doing. We are getting more industries in the state, more and more factories in the state. It is very difficult when you go to industries, even in Nasarawa State, when you look at the technical people you hardly see people from Nasarawa State. It is killing me. That is the reason why I am doing everything possible to see what we can meet up. I worked for two major companies that have so much to do with technical activities, the refinery in Lagos and African Petroleum and the rest of that. If you look at it, no people from Nasarawa State in those companies,” he stated.
Harping on the significance of vocational and technical education, the Governor said Nigeria is blessed with intelligent, smart and result-driving people such that with commitment and determination, Nigeria can compete favorably in the area of technical and vocational skills with developed countries such as China.
He said a core policy drive of his administration is to ensure that Nasarawa State catches up with other states like Kano in the area of technical and vocational skills.
Governor Sule was particularly excited that a female from the NBTE is the leader of the team, signifying that Nigeria has made tremendous progress in the area of technical and vocational education, a field previously considered the preserve of men.
While accepting to give the NBTE team a free hand to carry out their exercise, with a view to assessing the readiness of IMAP to run the specified programmes, he appreciated the Acting Rector of the institution, Nurudeen Maifata, for the successes being recorded so far.
“I will allow you to find out on our state of readiness. But one thing is certain, I must commend the Acting Rector and his team for the wonderful job they have continued to do in that institution. Every opportunity that they have to bring about improvement and to get us to a day like this. I really want to commend him personally for taking the time as well as all members of his team,” he said.
In her speech, leader of the NBTE team, Fatima Kabir Umar, Director of Polytechnic Programmes, who stood in for NBTE’s Executive Secretary, Prof. Idris Bugaje, said they were in the state to carry out resource verification for 21 new courses at the Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic Lafia, with reaccreditation for another 18 courses.
Umar described the visitation as unprecedented in the history of the NBTE with over 150 participants on ground for the exercise.
“We thank you for the support for vocational and technical education, which is paramount to the national economy. I can assure that the team would work earnestly the way they should. 150 participants is not easy to host and again the number of programmes that we have come for. In my stay in NBTE, this is the first time I have participated in a number of programmes like this,” she said.
She particularly commended Governor Sule for turning IMAP into a Polytechnic, stressing that if other governors have done what he is doing now at the institution, the courses being accredited won’t have piled up.
Umar said with adequate investment in skills, technology and vocational education, Nigeria would be in position to compete and even surpass China and all other countries that have developed.
“If we can invest in skills, technical and vocational education, we will get there. We can be better than even China and all other countries that have developed. We will get there and even more than them. We have the manpower, we have all the resources that is required to do this. We believe with your type we will get there,” she added.
Earlier, in an introductory remarks, Acting Rector of the IMAP, Nurudeen Maifata, appreciated Governor Sule for approving N30m to host the over 150 participants from the NBTE for the accreditation and verification exercise.
Maifata used the opportunity to highlight some of the interventions by the Governor Sule administration that has turned the institution into an authentic Polytechnic.
“Your Excellency, it may interest you to note that since the inception of the Polytechnic, we have never gotten any approval to commence any of the engineering programmes until you came onboard. Last two years, precisely in 2022, we were here with the verification team. That was when we got approval to commence national diploma in electrical/electronics engineering, mechanical engineering and civil engineering and other programmes,” he said.
The Acting Rector disclosed that 12 of these programmes are due for reaccreditation.
“Then we have about 21 newly introduced programmes. We were able to introduce these new programmes due to your immense support and contribution to the institution. I am happy to inform you that out of these 21 programmes, about 16 are engineering related programmes. These programmes are for resource inspection. The teams are here to assess and verify to grant us approval to commence these programmes,” he stated.
He further appreciated the support from the Governor which made it possible for the schools of sciences and communication at the IMAP to move into their permanent site previously abundant.(www.krestnews.com).
Ali Abare
Senior Special Assistant on Media to Governor Abdullahi Sule